SYDNEY, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set for a
firm start on Monday, after stronger-than-expected U.S. retail
sales figures helped push Wall Street higher.
All eyes will be on takeover target Axa Asia-Pacific , which said on Monday it had received a higher offer from AMP Ltd implying a A$6.22 bid.
Upbeat consumer confidence data added to the positive economic news for Wall Street on Friday and sent the Standard & Poor's 500 Index up 0.37 percent
Share price index futures eased 3 points to 4,656, a
21
point premium to the close of the underlying index on Friday.
Shares in Woodside Petroleum Ltd are on trading halt after the company said it planned a A$2.5 billion capital raising to help fund further LNG development. Its largest shareholder, Shell, will take up its full entitlement.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index fell 0.1 percent to 3,124 in early trade.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2153 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1106.41 0.37% 4.060 USD/JPY 88.95 -0% 0.000
10-YR US TSY YLD 3.5498 -
0.000 SPOT GOLD 1113.85 0.00% 0.000 US CRUDE 69.66 -1.25% -0.670 DOW JONES 10471.50 0.63% 65.67 ASIA ADRS 126.67 0.19% 0.24
* Dow, S&P end up after solid data, Nasdaq slips
* Oil drops below $70 on stronger dollar
* Gold hits 4-week low as US data lifts dollar
* Copper jumps on strong US, Chinese economic data
For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on
((Australia/New Zealand bureaux; +61 2 9373 1800/+64 4 471 4234))
DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary & data Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Australia diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead ................................................................ For latest top breaking news across all markets ................................................................ TOP NEWS SUMMARIES ON OTHER SUBJECTS | U.S. Companies | European Companies | | Forex | Global Economy | | Tech.Media,Telecoms | Banking, Financials | | Politics & General | Sports | ................................................................ MAJOR STOCK MARKET REPORTS New York Weekly outlook New York Pan-Europe Weekly outlook Europe London Weekly outlook London Tokyo ................................................................ ASIA STOCK MARKETS Pan-Asia...................... Bangkok...... Karachi........ S/east Asia. Bombay....... Kuala Lumpur... Sydney/NZ... China........ Seoul.......... Taipei...... Hong Kong.... Singapore...... Tokyo........ ................................................................ Access to some items may depend on subscription level. ................................................................ UP-TO-THE-MINUTE HEADLINES Company results Economic indicators Mergers & acquisitions Interest rates LIVE PRICES & DATA World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt HOW TO FIND INFORMATION YOU NEED | | | | | || | | | LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt Australian dollar LME price overview Keywords: MARKETS AUSTRALIA STOCKS (Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra : visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com * BridgeStation: view story .134 For more information on Top News, please visit http://topnews.reuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
All eyes will be on takeover target Axa Asia-Pacific , which said on Monday it had received a higher offer from AMP Ltd implying a A$6.22 bid.
Upbeat consumer confidence data added to the positive economic news for Wall Street on Friday and sent the Standard & Poor's 500 Index up 0.37 percent
Share price index futures eased 3 points to 4,656, a
21
point premium to the close of the underlying index on Friday.
Shares in Woodside Petroleum Ltd are on trading halt after the company said it planned a A$2.5 billion capital raising to help fund further LNG development. Its largest shareholder, Shell, will take up its full entitlement.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index fell 0.1 percent to 3,124 in early trade.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2153 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1106.41 0.37% 4.060 USD/JPY 88.95 -0% 0.000
10-YR US TSY YLD 3.5498 -
0.000 SPOT GOLD 1113.85 0.00% 0.000 US CRUDE 69.66 -1.25% -0.670 DOW JONES 10471.50 0.63% 65.67 ASIA ADRS 126.67 0.19% 0.24
* Dow, S&P end up after solid data, Nasdaq slips
* Oil drops below $70 on stronger dollar
* Gold hits 4-week low as US data lifts dollar
* Copper jumps on strong US, Chinese economic data
For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on
((Australia/New Zealand bureaux; +61 2 9373 1800/+64 4 471 4234))
DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary & data Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Australia diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead ................................................................ For latest top breaking news across all markets ................................................................ TOP NEWS SUMMARIES ON OTHER SUBJECTS | U.S. Companies | European Companies | | Forex | Global Economy | | Tech.Media,Telecoms | Banking, Financials | | Politics & General | Sports | ................................................................ MAJOR STOCK MARKET REPORTS New York Weekly outlook New York Pan-Europe Weekly outlook Europe London Weekly outlook London Tokyo ................................................................ ASIA STOCK MARKETS Pan-Asia...................... Bangkok...... Karachi........ S/east Asia. Bombay....... Kuala Lumpur... Sydney/NZ... China........ Seoul.......... Taipei...... Hong Kong.... Singapore...... Tokyo........ ................................................................ Access to some items may depend on subscription level. ................................................................ UP-TO-THE-MINUTE HEADLINES Company results Economic indicators Mergers & acquisitions Interest rates LIVE PRICES & DATA World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt HOW TO FIND INFORMATION YOU NEED | | | | | || | | | LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt Australian dollar LME price overview Keywords: MARKETS AUSTRALIA STOCKS (Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra : visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com * BridgeStation: view story .134 For more information on Top News, please visit http://topnews.reuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.