Australian Markets Drop 1%, Export Price Index Falls 5.2%

Marcus Jacob
29 Oct, 2015
New York City

ASX 200 index eased more than 1% in active trading after export price index in the third-quarter declined 5% from a year ago period. Crown Resorts acquired 20% stake in Japanese restaurant chain Nobu for $100 million.

[R]5:30 PM Sydney, Australia – ASX 200 index eased more than 1% in active trading after export price index in the third-quarter declined 5% from a year ago period. Crown Resorts acquired 20% stake in Japanese restaurant chain Nobu for $100 million.[/R]

In active trading, Australian market indexes eased and the Aussie dollar continued to slide.

The export price index in the third-quarter was unchanged from the second-quarter and dropped 5.2% from a year ago period, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported.

The import price index in the third-quarter increased 1.4% from second-quarter and jumped 3.5% compared to the same period a year ago.

Australian dollar ease to 71.08 U.S. cents and in stock trading turnover jumped to 825 million shares worth $6.3 billion.

At close, the ASX 200 Index slumped 68.30 or 1.3% to 5,266.90 and the broader All Ordinaries Index dropped 64.20 to 5,310.20.

In commodities trading, gold slid US$8 to US$1,160 an ounce and Brent crude future for immediate month delivery fell 49 cents to US$48.56 a barrel.

Australian Stock Movers

Crown Resorts Ltd slipped 1.7% to $11.47 after the casino and hotel operator agreed to acquire 20% stake in Japanese restaurant and hotel company Nobu for about US$100 million.

Newcrest Mining Limited plunged 7.6% to $12.72 after the gold producer estimated gold for the year to fall between 2.4 million and 2.6 million ounce, largely on operation problems.

The company said a mill at Cadia gold and copper mine in New South Wales were shut in mid-October after developing a motor problem.

Telstra Corporation Ltd dropped 1.4% to $5.50 after the communication services provider is in talk with Philippines-based San Miguel Corporation about the possible wireless joint venture with total investment of less than US$1 billion..

The company forecasted free cash flow for the fiscal 2016 between $4.6 billion and $5.6 billion.