Markets Live: ASX opens shy of 10-year high

Here's the full statement:

The Reserve Bank is vacating its Wellington building for about three months so it can remediate asbestos issues.

The Reserve Bank's currency, payments and settlements, and markets operations are not affected. We are able to undertake our currency operations in the building, as usual, with confidence. All other critical real-time banking functions are being operated from our Auckland premises.

Governor Adrian Orr said: "As a responsible employer and landlord, the Reserve Bank has decided to close the building so we can address the issue comprehensively. We will move to other premises until all necessary remedial action has been taken. I apologise for the inconvenience to tenants, staff, and customers of affected organisations. I congratulate my team for being so organised and effective."

The decision comes after ongoing asbestos remediation was proving too complex and disruptive. The final straw was yesterday when a trace amount of airborne asbestos was detected in one floor's lift foyer. The amount detected is low risk but the health and safety of all building occupants is our priority. The floor – level 6 - was vacated immediately.

Until yesterday, ongoing air monitoring in the Reserve Bank building showed that the level of respirable asbestos fibres was below trace level, meaning that the building was safe for occupation.

The ground and basement levels will remain occupied and in use. The way that those levels were built is different than the office block above, meaning those levels are safe.

"We expect to move back into the building after three months, when building-wide remediation work is finished and safety tests have been completed and signed off by specialist asbestos firm Major Consulting Group," Mr Orr said.

We are supporting tenants in the building as they make arrangements for temporary accommodation. They are the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Parliamentary Counsel Office, State Services Commission, and NZ Defence Force.

Mr Thomson said bringing together Foxtel and Fox Sports "will be our absolute focus".

"That combination we want to make more than a sum of the parts."

Max Mason has the full story here.

Only two stocks, Commonwealth Bank and CSL, are adding more than a point to the index this morning.

Domino's Pizza is the index's best performer, up just 2.1 per cent this morning. Crown Resorts is the next best, up 2 per cent.

James Hardie Industries is the index's biggest weight, down 6.7 per cent this morning. Brambles, Suncorp and AGL are also weighing.

The strong activity perhaps came as somewhat of a shock to traders, given the humdrum session on Wall Street the night before, combined with the floating of several geopolitical risks.

Some solid earnings reports set the foundations for the yesterday's run, namely from financials stocks Suncorp and Magellan; but the real catalyst for the stronger ASX was a general boost to sentiment from a rally in Chinese equities, which added 2 per cent according to the blue chip CSI300 index.

So far, reporting season has delivered some respectable results, which — assuming if it continues — will give impetus for pushes higher.

However, considering the vulnerability in bank stocks owing to tightening funding costs and slow credit growth, coupled with flatness in the materials space due to softer commodity prices and trade war fears, a sustainable move higher in the index must questioned and approached carefully.

Read the full 8@eight here.

AUD -0.8% to 73.74 US cents

On Wall St: Dow -0.3% S&P 500 -0.1% Nasdaq flat

In New York, BHP -0.3% Rio -0.5% Atlassian +3%

In Europe: Stoxx 50 flat FTSE -0.5% CAC flat DAX +0.3%

Spot gold -0.1% to $US1212.26 an ounce at 2.25pm New York time

Brent crude -0.4% to $US72.01 a barrel

US oil -0.2% to $US66.80 a barrel

Iron ore +0.5% to $US69.78 a tonne

Dalian iron ore +0.6% to 513 yuan

LME aluminium -1.3% to $US2078 a tonne

LME copper +0.8% to $US6225 a tonne

2-year yield: US 2.65% Australia 2.04%

5-year yield: US 2.81% Australia 2.24%

10-year yield: US 2.93% Australia 2.65% Germany 0.37%

10-yr yield gap US-Australia: 28 basis points

Local data: RBA Statement on Monetary Policy; NZ BusinessNZ manufacturing PMI July

"The point we are making is that we do not believe they are criminal breaches and we certainly do not believe they are criminal acts."

Mr Thorburn acknowledged the bank did not act honourably following a third day of evidence from the chairman of its superannuation trustee Nicole Smith, where it was revealed the bank was being investigated for more than 100 breaches of the law.

James Frost has the full story here.