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At noon the S&P/ASX200 index was up 62 points, while the All Ordinaries added 57.
The US market made modest gains on Thursday driven by mining and energy shares. A drop in banking stocks limited Wall Street’s rise though, as concerns over new requirements for investment bank disclosures depressed the financial sector.
At close of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 52 points, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 12.
In Asian trading today, Japan’s Nikkei was down 122 points at midday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 99.
Meanwhile making headlines on the ASX this morning, National Australia Bank was the last of the country’s top four banks to report half year results today, narrowly beating analysts’ expectations with an eight per cent rise in first half cash earnings.
NAB reported six-month earnings of more than $2.2 billion, helped by business lending growth and cost cuts. The bank has also nearly doubled its bad debt provision to $726 million to guard against tougher times ahead. Shares in the bank surged more than four per cent on the news.
In other news, Australia’s largest phone company Telstra today reiterated its 2008 earnings forecast, saying it was starting to see the benefits of its five year overhaul plan.
Telstra reaffirmed its February forecast of 6–8 per cent earnings (EBIT) growth in fiscal 2008. The company said it was starting to profit from increased consumer demand for high-speed internet and mobile phone services, as it tries to reduce its dependence on fixed-line revenues.
Finally, shares in troubled property group Centro opened more than 18 per cent higher this morning following yesterday’s announcement of a seven-month extension to its $2.8 billion debt facility.
Under the renegotiated terms, the debt which matured on April 30 will be extended until December 15. The extension will give the property trust more time to restructure its business, and to seek buyers for two of its unlisted funds which have an asset value of $3.7 billion. Shares in Centro were up by over four per cent at noon today.
In other individual share price movements on the ASX this morning, resource stocks made steady gains. At midday, BHP Billiton was up $1.05, Fortescue Metals added 11 cents, Rio Tinto made $1.58, and Woodside Petroleum put on 42 cents.
Banking stocks took heart from NAB’s solid results. ANZ was up 78 cents at midday, Commonwealth Bank added $1.01, National Australia Bank surged $1.62 and Westpac put on 25 cents.
Other blue chips were muted. At noon, AMP and Telstra both sat flat, News Corp fell 14 cents, and Woolworths slipped one cent.
The US market made modest gains on Thursday driven by mining and energy shares. A drop in banking stocks limited Wall Street’s rise though, as concerns over new requirements for investment bank disclosures depressed the financial sector.
At close of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 52 points, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 12.
In Asian trading today, Japan’s Nikkei was down 122 points at midday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 99.
Meanwhile making headlines on the ASX this morning, National Australia Bank was the last of the country’s top four banks to report half year results today, narrowly beating analysts’ expectations with an eight per cent rise in first half cash earnings.
NAB reported six-month earnings of more than $2.2 billion, helped by business lending growth and cost cuts. The bank has also nearly doubled its bad debt provision to $726 million to guard against tougher times ahead. Shares in the bank surged more than four per cent on the news.
In other news, Australia’s largest phone company Telstra today reiterated its 2008 earnings forecast, saying it was starting to see the benefits of its five year overhaul plan.
Telstra reaffirmed its February forecast of 6–8 per cent earnings (EBIT) growth in fiscal 2008. The company said it was starting to profit from increased consumer demand for high-speed internet and mobile phone services, as it tries to reduce its dependence on fixed-line revenues.
Finally, shares in troubled property group Centro opened more than 18 per cent higher this morning following yesterday’s announcement of a seven-month extension to its $2.8 billion debt facility.
Under the renegotiated terms, the debt which matured on April 30 will be extended until December 15. The extension will give the property trust more time to restructure its business, and to seek buyers for two of its unlisted funds which have an asset value of $3.7 billion. Shares in Centro were up by over four per cent at noon today.
In other individual share price movements on the ASX this morning, resource stocks made steady gains. At midday, BHP Billiton was up $1.05, Fortescue Metals added 11 cents, Rio Tinto made $1.58, and Woodside Petroleum put on 42 cents.
Banking stocks took heart from NAB’s solid results. ANZ was up 78 cents at midday, Commonwealth Bank added $1.01, National Australia Bank surged $1.62 and Westpac put on 25 cents.
Other blue chips were muted. At noon, AMP and Telstra both sat flat, News Corp fell 14 cents, and Woolworths slipped one cent.
