[ad_1]
Woolworths shares lost 59 cents, or 2.8 percent, after trading ex-dividend of 97 cents for the first time. The country’s biggest supermarket chain this week agreed to sell its final 4.1 percent stake in liquor company Endeavour Group, owner of bottle shop chains Dan Murphys and PWS.
Endeavour shares fell 3%, while Coles, which has yet to pay a dividend, fell 2.4%.
Mineral Resources was the biggest laggard after its shares fell 8.5 percent to close at their lowest price since early 2021.
Pilbara Minerals (down 3.2 per cent) and Whitehaven Coal (down 2.8 per cent) completed the list of biggest losers.
Mining giants BHP (down 1.7%) and Fortescue (down 2.6%) also fell after iron ore prices fell 4% to below $100 a tonne in Singapore.
the details
download
Australia's current account balance fell by $4.4 billion to a deficit of $10.7 billion in the second quarter, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, as goods exports fell by 4.4 per cent largely on the back of lower iron ore and coal prices.
The current account deficit, which shows Australia is sending far more money abroad than it receives, came in much higher than market expectations, suggesting exports will contribute less than expected to the country's gross domestic product figures due out on Wednesday.
“The current account deficit in this quarter was the largest since the second quarter of 2018, reflecting continued declines in commodity prices and higher income paid to non-residents,” said Tom Ley, head of international statistics at the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Kyle Rodda, senior financial markets analyst at Capital, said the ASX had been “remarkably resilient” and would have been stronger if supermarkets had not abandoned dividends.
“There is a slight downside bias as sentiment remains cautious, but markets are still in a holding pattern ahead of a busy week of US economic data. The non-farm payrolls report is the main event and will be the climax of the trading week,” said Rodda.
“However, there is a steady stream of data, starting tonight, which could lead to volatility as the jobs report approaches.”
In overseas markets, Wall Street remained closed for the Labor Day holiday.
In Europe, the Stoxx 600 index was flat at 524.94 points, remaining at record highs last week after data showed euro zone inflation fell to its slowest pace in three years. Germany’s DAX rose 0.1 percent, London’s FTSE 100 lost 0.2 percent and Paris’ CAC 100 added 0.2 percent.
Stocks in Germany rose even as the far-right Alternative for Germany party and the left-wing populist Sahra Wagenknecht alliance won state elections, a major blow to Chancellor Olaf Scholz's already fragile ruling coalition.
Tweet of the day
Quote of the day
“I'm about to fix it [corruption] “Respected unionists … who work to improve the wages and conditions of their fellow members — people who give up their time because they are passionate about helping their fellow workers — deserve our respect,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said after ousted CFL officials launched a Supreme Court challenge to the federal government’s decision to place the union under administration.
“The legitimate role of the union movement is undermined wherever there is corruption… You can’t have a corrupt union official without having a corrupt employer, so we are working to clean up the industry, and we make no apologies for that. [that]”.”
download
You may have missed it.
Senior figures in the Australian Workers' Union have secretly helped organised crime boss George Alex build a sprawling, corrupt labour recruitment empire, despite repeated warnings that he is an underworld figure who has previously bribed union officials, ripped off workers and the Australian Tax Office.
The extent of Alex's corruption with the CFMEU could be revealed after He was convicted this week of tax evasion and money laundering. As part of an illegal scheme found by the Federal Police that relied on Alex's success in “exploiting connections in labor unions” and within major construction companies.
[ad_2]
Source