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At midday the S&P/ASX200 index was up 22 points, while the All Ordinaries added 29.
US stocks rose on Wednesday as inflationary fears cooled on a lower-than-expected rise in the consumer price index, and after Freddy Mac and Macy’s both posted reassuring interim results.
At close of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 66 points, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added a point.
In Asian trading today, Japan’s Nikkei was up 146 points at midday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 196.
In ASX news today, shares in drinks giant Coca-Cola Amatil rose more than five per cent this morning on news that it expects high single-digit half and full-year growth, helped by efficiency gains.
The soft-drinks manufacturer said that it had managed to offset weaker sales volumes by better managing its revenue. Shares in Coca-Cola Amatil have fallen 16 per cent in 2008 amid fears that profits will be hit by lower consumer spending, and heavy discounting by its main competitor Cadbury Schweppes.
In other news, Commonwealth Bank today issued a cautious third quarter market update. The bank said continued volatility in equity markets was likely to impact its wealth management operations performance in the second half.
CBA which is the country’s biggest bank by market capitalisation, said that the March quarter had been a challenging one for the global banking industry, but that it had seen good volume and share gains in its banking operations during the quarter to March 31.
Finally, agribusiness investment company Timbercorp today posted a 37 per cent drop in first half net profit, which came in at $3.5 million.
CEO Robert Hence said that total revenue for the period of $189 million, was up 18 per cent on last year, but that profit had been affected by more than $11 million worth of write-offs. Mr Hence added that the company expects earnings to grow strongly in coming years as harvesting of its extensive forestry estate commences in Victoria and South Australia. Shares in Timbercorp were flat at noon.
In other individual share price movements on the ASX earlier today resource stocks were mixed. At midday BHP Billiton was down 71 cents, Fortescue Metals added 19, Rio Tinto put on 85 cents, and Woodside Petroleum gained $1.29.
Banking stocks mostly made losses in morning trade. At noon, ANZ was down eight cents, Commonwealth Bank was the exception adding 49, National Australia Bank shed ten cents, and Westpac lost 40.
Other blue chips were mixed. At noon, AMP was up six cents, News Corp fell 16, Telstra gained nine cents, while Woolworths added four.
US stocks rose on Wednesday as inflationary fears cooled on a lower-than-expected rise in the consumer price index, and after Freddy Mac and Macy’s both posted reassuring interim results.
At close of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 66 points, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added a point.
In Asian trading today, Japan’s Nikkei was up 146 points at midday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 196.
In ASX news today, shares in drinks giant Coca-Cola Amatil rose more than five per cent this morning on news that it expects high single-digit half and full-year growth, helped by efficiency gains.
The soft-drinks manufacturer said that it had managed to offset weaker sales volumes by better managing its revenue. Shares in Coca-Cola Amatil have fallen 16 per cent in 2008 amid fears that profits will be hit by lower consumer spending, and heavy discounting by its main competitor Cadbury Schweppes.
In other news, Commonwealth Bank today issued a cautious third quarter market update. The bank said continued volatility in equity markets was likely to impact its wealth management operations performance in the second half.
CBA which is the country’s biggest bank by market capitalisation, said that the March quarter had been a challenging one for the global banking industry, but that it had seen good volume and share gains in its banking operations during the quarter to March 31.
Finally, agribusiness investment company Timbercorp today posted a 37 per cent drop in first half net profit, which came in at $3.5 million.
CEO Robert Hence said that total revenue for the period of $189 million, was up 18 per cent on last year, but that profit had been affected by more than $11 million worth of write-offs. Mr Hence added that the company expects earnings to grow strongly in coming years as harvesting of its extensive forestry estate commences in Victoria and South Australia. Shares in Timbercorp were flat at noon.
In other individual share price movements on the ASX earlier today resource stocks were mixed. At midday BHP Billiton was down 71 cents, Fortescue Metals added 19, Rio Tinto put on 85 cents, and Woodside Petroleum gained $1.29.
Banking stocks mostly made losses in morning trade. At noon, ANZ was down eight cents, Commonwealth Bank was the exception adding 49, National Australia Bank shed ten cents, and Westpac lost 40.
Other blue chips were mixed. At noon, AMP was up six cents, News Corp fell 16, Telstra gained nine cents, while Woolworths added four.
