The Australian share market has opened flat despite solid gains on Wall St overnight, while David Jones has jumped over news it received and rejected a bid from Myer last year.
Earnings in the US have continued to progress favourably, buoyed by data showing the world’s biggest economy grew as expected in the fourth quarter.
It left Wall St higher in afternoon trade, but the numbers were not reflected in local stocks which fell flat.
Chief market analyst at CMC, Ric Spooner, said there was a question mark among investors over the extent of the rally in the US markets.
“And perhaps the local sharemarket is more focused on troubled emerging markets,” he said.
Concerns over the world’s second-biggest economy China were sparked on Thursday, as data pointed to a slowdown in factory activity in Australia’s most important trading partner for the first time in six months.
In the retail industry, David Jones shares shot up by 12 cents to $3.00 after it was revealed on Thursday night the retailer had recently been approached by rival Myer to consider a merger, which its board promptly rejected.
Myer shares also rose by two cents to $2.59.
Coca-Cola Amatil weakened by four cents to $11.75, on the back of the federal government’s decision not to grant its parent company, SPC Ardmona, the $25 million it requested to continue production and provide more jobs.
The major banks were mixed. Commonwealth Bank was up 12 cents at $74.32 and National Australia Bank had shed three cents to $33.24, but ANZ was up seven cents at $30.12 while Westpac had dropped eight cents to $30.81.
In the resources sector, global miner BHP Billiton was weaker, down 27 cents to $36.42, Rio Tinto dropped 43 cents cents to $65.37, while iron ore miner Fortescue Metals gained six cents to $5.29.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.71 per cent while the broad-based S&P 500 climbed 1.07 per cent.
KEY FACTS
* At 1012 AEDT on Friday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 1.4 points, or 0.03 per cent, at 5,189.5 points.
* The broader All Ordinaries index had gained 2.6 points, or 0.05 per cent, at 5,202 points.
* The March share price index futures contract was two points higher at 5,140 points, with 6,664 contracts traded.
* National turnover was 458 million securities worth 2.9 billion.
