Though winter is round the corner in Australia , it seems the bears are wide awake and have the upper hand in Sydney this morning, with a sharp drop for iron-ore prices sending miners’ share prices deeper into the hole.
With the S&P/ASX 200 down 0.5%, we have BHP Billiton off 0.6%, Rio Tinto lower by 1.2%, and among the iron-focused names, Fortescue Metals down 3.2%, and Atlas Iron down 2.5%. Yet, Mount Gibson Iron is up 1.4%, possibly buoyed by a board shake-up, reducing the number of directors representing major shareholders to two from three.
Among the heavily weighted banks, ANZ seemed poised for gains after its earnings and dividend came in just ahead of estimates. But no such luck: ANZ shares are lower by 1%, while among its peers, NAB is down 1.2%, Westpac is down 1%, and CBA is flat.
And then there’s Woolworths, extending losses by another 2%. Dow Jones Newswires is attributing the further weakness to a ratings downgrade from Deutsche Bank to hold from buy, likely based on the sales figures that helped sink the stock yesterday.
With the S&P/ASX 200 down 0.5%, we have BHP Billiton off 0.6%, Rio Tinto lower by 1.2%, and among the iron-focused names, Fortescue Metals down 3.2%, and Atlas Iron down 2.5%. Yet, Mount Gibson Iron is up 1.4%, possibly buoyed by a board shake-up, reducing the number of directors representing major shareholders to two from three.
Among the heavily weighted banks, ANZ seemed poised for gains after its earnings and dividend came in just ahead of estimates. But no such luck: ANZ shares are lower by 1%, while among its peers, NAB is down 1.2%, Westpac is down 1%, and CBA is flat.
And then there’s Woolworths, extending losses by another 2%. Dow Jones Newswires is attributing the further weakness to a ratings downgrade from Deutsche Bank to hold from buy, likely based on the sales figures that helped sink the stock yesterday.