Market Update & Important Indicators:
U.S. stocks headed toward fresh closing highs after President Donald Trump signalled he would advance campaign promises to lower taxes. Stocks climbed in early trading following some upbeat earnings. The rally intensified after Mr. Trump said at a White House meeting with airline executives that he would make an announcement that would be "phenomenal in terms of tax" within the next three weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average intraday rose 125 points, or 0.6%, to 2018. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.6%. All three were on pace to close at records. But financials were the biggest gainers of the day-a hallmark of the post-election rally. The KBW Nasdaq Bank Index of large U.S. commercial lenders rose 1.5% and the financial sector led gains in the S&P 500.
European stocks ended higher for a third straight session. The Stoxx Europe 600 index climbed 0.8% to close at 366.79, ending at its highest level since Jan. 26. Even with three days of gains, equity markets in Europe have been trading in tight ranges recently, as investors absorb heightened political risks and a deluge of earnings reports. "So far this year, equity markets across Europe, for all the ups and downs seen in the last few weeks, aren't too far from where they started the year, as investors try to look through the fog of politics in France, Germany, the Netherlands, as well as the banking issues in Italy and the possibility of new elections there, as well as the perennial problem child of Greece," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, in a note.
Global stocks edged higher amid investor optimism about company earnings. In Asia, stocks were broadly positive, led by an 0.5% rise in the Shanghai Composite Index, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.2% and Korea's Kospi added 0.1%. The health of the Chinese economy is a key factor for global activity to remain robust this year, but officials have recently struggled to support the yuan amid a rising dollar. The WSJ Dollar Index was flat. Investors are set to take cues from Chinese trade data due Friday. China's January exports in dollar terms are expected to rise 3.1% from a year ago, while imports are expected to rise 10% for a trade surplus of $50 billion.
A third straight day of gains pushed Australian shares to their highest level in almost two weeks after a volatile session, as corporate earnings took centre stage. The S&P/ASX 200 index finished 13.2 points, or 0.2%, higher at 5664.6 after having swung between positive and negative territory. Most industry sectors were stronger, with mining stocks the biggest drag on the market.
Copper for delivery in three months was down 1.24%% at $5,822/t on Thursday. The other base metals were mixed on Thursday. Aluminium prices rose 0.3% at 1,835/t, whilst tin prices rose 0.3% at 19,041/t. Lead prices fell 2.1% overnight at 2,338/t, nickel prices fell 2.0% at 10,233/t and zinc prices fell 0.6% at 2,832/t.
In this Issue:
Paragon Care (PGC) | Look beyond seasonality | BUY
Market Cap $119m | Current Price $0.72 | Valuation $1.05
PGC’s interims delivered 46% EBITDA growth on 1H16 although the market focused on, and was disappointed by, a performance 11% weaker than 2H16. However with full year guidance close to our pre-results expectations, the extent of the seasonality in the business was not appreciated. We remain attracted to the sector and PGC’s long-term growth potential, and maintain a buy call on a $1.05 blended valuation.
Recent Contacts & Presentations:
St George Mining Ltd (SGQ), Threat Protect Australia Ltd (TPS), Paringa Resources Ltd (PNL), The Gruden Group Ltd (GGL), Primary Gold Ltd (PGO), Vault Intelligence Ltd (VLT), Botanix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (BOT) Orthocell Ltd (OCC), Strandline Resources Ltd (STA) Dragontail Systems Ltd (DTS), ABM Resources Ltd (ABU), Acacia Coal Ltd (AJC), Troy Resources Ltd (TRY), Hazer Group Ltd (HZR), Berkeley Energia Ltd (BKY), Sino Gas & Energy Holdings Ltd (SEH), Sovereign Metals Ltd (SVM), Kin Mining (KIN), Vital Metals Ltd (VML), Mincor Resources (MCR), Dacian Gold (DCN), Leaf Resources Ltd (LER), Alchemy Resources Ltd (ALY), OpenDNA Limited (OPN), MZI Resources Ltd (MZI)
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