Market Update & Important Indicators
The Dow Jones Industrial Average turned higher intraday after plunging nearly 400 points earlier in the session, a sign of the stock market's resilience despite signs of weakening economic data, rising interest rates and lackluster corporate earnings reports. The blue-chip index has been range bound, trading in a narrow span of about 700 points over the past two months. But it has struggled to gain traction since losing more than 10% of its value over nine sessions in January and February. The Dow industrials have declined nine of the past 11 sessions entering the day and remain roughly 10% below their last high on Jan. 26. Shares took another leg lower after data showed that the pace of growth across much of the U.S. economy slowed in April. The Dow was recently up recording 23930, after earlier sliding as much as 394 points. The S&P 500 declined 0.2%, putting it on pace for a second straight session of losses, while the Nasdaq Composite fell less than 0.1%.
The Stoxx Europe 600 closed down 0.7% at 384.62, tracking falls in U.S. stocks ahead of U.S.-China trade talks, concerns about higher U.S. interest rates and of profit-taking. Germany's DAX ended down 0.9%, France's CAC 40 down 0.5% and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 down 0.5%. Italy's FTSE MIB dropped by 0.8% and Spain's Ibex 35 by 0.5%. U.K. medical device-maker Smith & Nephew was down by 7% after the company downgraded its 2018 sales guidance, while shares in German-based Company Adidas drop 6.4% after first quarter results.
Stocks in parts of the Asia-Pacific, including Hong Kong, posted declines of some 1.5%, in part on interest-rate worries as the Federal Reserve reiterated plans to continue raising rates gradually as inflation firms. While gold, the dollar and Treasury yields quickly recouped losses during U.S. trading, stocks didn't. They steadily fell into the close, finishing with declines approaching 1%. That weakness largely carried across the Pacific, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index leading the decline with a 1.7% drop at midday. Tech and real-estate stocks were among those falling more than 2%. Market talk about fresh U.S. sanctions against Chinese telecom-equipment makers ZTE and Huawei Technologies as well as renewed weakness in the Hong Kong dollar sparked concerns about fund outflows, said Hayman Chiu, research director at Cinda International.
A continued recovery by Australia's big banks and a solid rise by miners helped drive the country's stock benchmark to a three-month closing high. The S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.8% to 6098.3, notching its second five-day winning streak in two weeks, with only yield-sensitive property trusts in the red. Helped by recent Aussie dollar weakness and gains in iron-ore prices, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue each gained more than 1%. The major banks also continued to charge, though NAB fell 0.6% after its fiscal first-half report
The London Metal Exchange’s 3-month copper contract gained 0.1% to 6,792/t. The other base metals were mainly down overnight. Lead prices fell by 0.6% to 2,256/t, whilst zinc prices also decreased 1.4% to 2,988/t. Aluminium finished 2.4% lower at 2,270/t. The Nickle price decreased by 1.5% to 13,725/t. Tin Prices gained only 0.7% to record 21,345/t.
In this issue
Salt Lake Potash (SO4) | Quarterly Report: March 2018 | SPEC BUY
Market Cap $96.2m | Current Price $0.555
SO4 has had a positive quarter and has progressed its Goldfields Salt Lake Potash Project by signing two agreements, ongoing sampling, exploration, testing and flow sheet development and optimisation. SO4 is planning to release a scoping study on the development of a demonstration plant and Sulphate of Potash (SOP) project on Lake Way.
Recent Contacts & Presentations
Great Boulder Resources (GBR), Orthocell (OCC), Northern Minerals (NTU), ABM Resources Ltd (ABU), Vital Metals Ltd (VML), Todd River Resources Ltd (TRT), Pacific Energy Ltd (PEA), Carnarvon Petroleum Ltd (CVN), Australian Mines Ltd (AUZ), Australian Finance Group (AFG), Paladin Energy Ltd (PDN), Cooper Energy Ltd (COE), Medibio Ltd (MEB), Botanix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (BOT), Salt Lake Potash Ltd (SO4), Golden Mile Resources Ltd (G88), NTM Gold Ltd (NTM), Ausmex Mining Group Ltd (AMG), Matrix C&E Ltd (MCE), Austal Ltd (ASB), Decmil Group Ltd (DCG), Ventnor Resources Ltd, Ausdrill Ltd (ASL), Alice Queen Ltd (AQX), PNX Metals Ltd (PNX), Alliance Resources Ltd (AGS), Myanmar Metals Ltd (MYL), Primary Gold Ltd (PGO), Sino Gas & Energy Holdings Ltd (SEH)
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