MARKET TALK: S&P/ASX 200 Offshore Leads Mostly Bearish

28th Jul 2010 00:25

2325 GMT [Dow Jones] S&P/ASX 200 offshore leads mostly bearish, with overnight SPI 200 futures down 0.5% at 4485.0. Wall Street fell as economic concerns outweighed corporate earnings strength, although base metals rose on positive comments from China. DJIA down 0.4% at 10497.88, S&P 500 down 0.7% to 1106.13, Nasdaq down 1.0% to 2264.56. Fed's Beige Book said recent U.S. economic activity modest, with small gains in retail sales, while housing and construction remained weak. U.S. June durable goods fell 1.0% % vs 1.1% rise expected. China's PBOC said there's little risk of double-dip recession and the current slowdown in China is beneficial for long-term sustainable growth. S&P 500 financials down 0.9%, with KBW Bank index down 1.3% as Moody's downgraded credit rating outlook for BofA (-1.4%), Citi (-1.7%), Wells Fargo (-1.1%) to Negative from Stable, because of Dodd-Frank financial reforms. S&P 500 Materials down 0.5%, with Alcoa down 1.5%, Freeport up 0.8%, US Steel down 3.0%, Vale up 1.2%, Newmont down 0.7%. BHP Billiton (BHP.AU) ADRs at equivalent A$40.40 (based on AUD/USD at 0.8922) vs local close at A$40.20. U.K. listed BHP up 1.0%, Rio (RIO.AU) up 1.0%. S&P 500 Industrials down 0.2%, with Boeing down 1.9% after missing 2Q revenue expectations. S&P 500 Energy down 0.1%, with Nymex crude down 0.8% to US$76.99. S&P 500 Consumer Discretionary down 0.7%, with Home Depot down 1.8%, though Las Vegas Sands rose 5.6% as 2Q profit beat expectations. Spot gold at US$1,163.55 vs US$1,163.00 this time Wednesday. EUR/USD at 1.2991 vs 1.2997. AUD/USD at 0.8922 vs 0.9013. LME copper up 1.6%, zinc up 2.4%, aluminum up 0.6%, nickel down 0.7%. S&P/ASX 200 last 4529.9. ([email protected]) Contact us in Singapore. 65 64154 140; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 28, 2010 19:25 ET (23:25 GMT)