A man looks the board of the Australian Securities Exchange ASX in central Sydney August 7, 2013.
A man looks the board of the Australian Securities Exchange in central Sydney August 7, 2013. Reuters/Daniel Munoz
  • Australian shares are falling for the second day, with the ASX 200 index down by 0.7 per cent at lunch. The index has fallen below 5450pts, with mining stocks the biggest drag on trade.
  • China’s surprise devaluation of its currency has pushed the greenback higher overnight and the Australian dollar substantially lower to ~US$0.725. The PBoC’s move on Tuesday has created jitters relating to the health of China’s economy. The firmer USD has pushed commodity prices lower and in turn resource stocks are being sold off most on Wednesday.
  • Australia’s largest iron ore miner, Rio Tinto (RIO), is down 5.5 per cent and is being held back by it trading ex-dividend today. RIO will be paying out a $1.44/share interim dividend to eligible shareholders on 10 September.
  • Commonwealth Bank (CBA) shares are in a trading halt as the financial institution is in the process of raising around $5bn via the market to help meet regulatory changes by the banking regulator – APRA. CBA also posted a 5 per cent jump in cash profit to $9,137m for FY15.
  • Profit reporting season is continuing, with a handful of companies issuing their earnings results at lunch. South Australia based copper and gold miner, OZ Minerals (OZL) is down 4.5 per cent after its profit, sales and dividend missed the market’s expectations. The miner’s 59 per cent lift in copper production helped offset the 20 per cent slide in copper prices over the half. An unfranked 6c/share interim dividend will be paid out to eligible investors on 24 September.
  • At lunch, 1.1bn shares have been traded worth $2.7bn. 324 stocks are up, 499 down and 315 unchanged.

Steven Daghlian - Market Analyst (Author)

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