SYDNEY, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Australian stocks are expected to open in negative territory on Friday as severe floods in Queensland states hit coal miners and soft retail sales in the United States overnight hurt sentiment.
Shares price index futures fell 5.0 points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,707.0, an 18 point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index which ended higher in the previous session.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index was trading near flat, down 0.447 points to 3,326.267 in early trade.
The Australian market traded marginally lower for most of the previous session but made a late recovery with volumes light all week.
Severe floods in Australia which have destroyed crops, brought the bulk of coking-coal mining to a stand-still and destroyed infrastructure have influenced trading most of the week.
'In summary, it doesn't look like a great lead for our market, especially given the specific concerns the ASX is facing. With nothing in the way of local economic data, participants are going to continue to focus on the effects of the flooding as well as positioning themselves for this evening's nonfarm payrolls number,' IG Markets analyst Ben Potter said.
Coal haulage firms QR National and Asciano will be in the spotlight on Friday as investors assess the potential impact on their earnings from the floods.
U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday as soft retail sales and a sharp rise in the dollar left investors edgy.
Gold and copper prices fell overnight with BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto trading weaker in London.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2213 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1273.85 -0.21% -2.710 USD/JPY 83.28 -0.06% -0.050 10-YR US TSY YLD 3.4029 -- -0.060 SPOT GOLD 1370.65 -0.04% -0.500 US CRUDE 88.13 -2.40% -2.170 DOW JONES 11697.31 -0.22% -25.58 ASIA ADRS 141.99 -0.24% -0.34 -------------------------------------------------------------
* Retailers hold down stocks ahead of jobs data
* Oil drops 2 pct as dollar rises
* Gold falls on improved outlook; payrolls eyed
* Copper tracks weak euro, equities to softer close
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 2011. 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.
Shares price index futures fell 5.0 points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,707.0, an 18 point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index which ended higher in the previous session.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index was trading near flat, down 0.447 points to 3,326.267 in early trade.
The Australian market traded marginally lower for most of the previous session but made a late recovery with volumes light all week.
Severe floods in Australia which have destroyed crops, brought the bulk of coking-coal mining to a stand-still and destroyed infrastructure have influenced trading most of the week.
'In summary, it doesn't look like a great lead for our market, especially given the specific concerns the ASX is facing. With nothing in the way of local economic data, participants are going to continue to focus on the effects of the flooding as well as positioning themselves for this evening's nonfarm payrolls number,' IG Markets analyst Ben Potter said.
Coal haulage firms QR National and Asciano will be in the spotlight on Friday as investors assess the potential impact on their earnings from the floods.
U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday as soft retail sales and a sharp rise in the dollar left investors edgy.
Gold and copper prices fell overnight with BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto trading weaker in London.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2213 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1273.85 -0.21% -2.710 USD/JPY 83.28 -0.06% -0.050 10-YR US TSY YLD 3.4029 -- -0.060 SPOT GOLD 1370.65 -0.04% -0.500 US CRUDE 88.13 -2.40% -2.170 DOW JONES 11697.31 -0.22% -25.58 ASIA ADRS 141.99 -0.24% -0.34 -------------------------------------------------------------
* Retailers hold down stocks ahead of jobs data
* Oil drops 2 pct as dollar rises
* Gold falls on improved outlook; payrolls eyed
* Copper tracks weak euro, equities to softer close
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 2011. 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.