Markets Live: Energy sectors pulls ASX lower

Loading Chart...

10:58am

NAB chairman Dr Ken Henry was questioned about a first-class trip to the US booked by the former NAB employee at the centre of a fraud investigation but said he was unaware of breaking any rules at the time.

Dr Henry and his wife accepted a first-class trip to the US in October 2016 that was booked by former chief of staff Rosemary Rogers at the urging of CEO Andrew Thorburn, according to documents released by the Hayne royal commission.

Board papers from May reveal Dr Henry expressed "frustration and disappointment" at the circumstances and was questioned by the board about the issue, but do not reveal whether he repaid the difference between the first-class tickets that were booked and business-class tickets that were allowed under the travel policy.

James Frost has the full story here.

10:40am

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority has removed the 30 per cent limit on interest-only lending and 10 per cent investor growth cap, declaring they have "served their purpose".

With housing prices coming off sharply in Sydney and Melbourne over recent months, APRA chairman Wayne Byres said on Wednesday the lending benchmarks "were always intended to be temporary".

He said that "both have now served their purpose of moderating higher risk lending and supporting a gradual strengthening of lending standards across the industry over a number of years".

James Eyers has the full story here.

10:24am

Australian shares have opened trade slightly lower on Wednesday, weighed by the energy sector.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index is trading 10.4 points, or 0.2 per cent, lower at 5579.1.

Origin Energy, Woodside Petroleum, Santos and Oil Search are all weighing the market this morning.

CSL is weighing the index, down 0.8 per cent, BHP Group is down 0.5 per cent and Telstra is trading 1 per cent lower.

Bega Cheese is weighing 4.3 per cent, Abacus Property Group 3.8 per cent and Syrah Resources is down 3.6 per cent.

Commonwealth Bank is down 1.4 per cent, Westpac is 1.3 per cent lower and ANZ is down 1.3 per cent.

Saracen Mineral Holdings is up 3.9 per cent, Qantas Airways is up 3.5 per cent and Regis Resources is up 3.4.

10:01am

SPONSORED POST

Australian shares are set to open flat today as a a tech-fuelled rally on Wall Street faded ahead of the year-ending Fed meeting, with oil and metals prices also taking a hit overnight, writes Kyle Rodda.

The SPI200 futures contract is unchanged at 5,580 points at 8am on Wednesday, pointing to a flat open for the benchmark ASX/200.

Analysts expect US Federal Reserve to raise rates for the fourth time in 2018 and will be keenly listening to Fed chair Jerome Powell for clues to how many hikes are in store for the next 12 months.

Oil prices plunged more than five per cent amid continued US supply concerns and fears over global economic growth, with local energy stocks likely to slide again as a result.

Read the full 8@eight here.

9:55am

Here are the overnight market highlights:

SPI futures flat at 5580 at 8.00am AEDT

AUD flat at 71.81 US cents at 8.00am AEDT

On Wall St in New York: Dow +0.4% S&P 500 +0.3% Nasdaq +0.5%

In Europe: Stoxx 50 -0.8% FTSE -1.1% CAC -1.0% DAX -0.3%

Gold +0.3% to $US1249.10 an ounce at 1.50pm in New York

Brent crude -4.0% to $US57.20 a barrel at 1.50pm in New York

Iron ore -2.0% to $US69.03 a tonne

LME aluminium -0.9% to $US1925 a tonne

LME copper -2.5% to $US5970 a tonne

10-year yield: US 2.83% Australia 2.42% Germany 0.24%

9:19am

Global stocks fell heavily on firming signals that the US economy could be set to join China and Europe in slowdown ahead of a critical meeting by the US Federal Reserve this week that could reset the path for interest rates in 2019.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 68 points or 1.2 per cent on Tuesday after Wall Street hit a 14-month low following a 2.2 per cent loss by the S&P 500. The Nasdaq fell 2.3 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 2.1 per cent.

"The US sharemarket is wrestling with peak earnings growth, a flattening yield curve and widening credit spreads. The US markets' price-to-earnings de-rating has been the fourth most vicious in 40 years," said Ben Griffiths, portfolio manager at Eley Griffiths Group.

Sarah Turner and Vesna Poljak has the full story here.

9:00am

Good morning and welcome to Markets Live for Wednesday.

Your editor today is William McInnes.

This blog is not intended as investment advice.

Fairfax Media with wires.

Markets Live: Energy sectors pulls ASX lower

Markets Live: Energy sectors pulls ASX lower

Search ASX quotes

Most Viewed in Business