That's it for Markets Live for today.
Thanks for joining us and thank you for your comments.
We'll be back tomorrow morning.
That's it for Markets Live for today.
Thanks for joining us and thank you for your comments.
We'll be back tomorrow morning.
The S&P/ASX 200 index closed 37.5 points, or 0.6 per cent, lower at 6,097.8 points as index heavyweights Telstra and NAB recorded losses.
Telstra's share price fell to a 7-year low on Tuesday after analysts warned the telco's dividend could be cut in 2019. Citi analyst David Kaynes said the company would need to take drastic action in order to minimise the next dividend cut and that Telstra's current strategy wasn't working. Its shares fell 5.6 per cent to $2.87.
NAB shares fell as it traded ex-dividend, the only major bank to end the day in the red. A note from Macquarie also showed that the bank had recorded the worst underlying revenue of the four majors for the first half of the year. It closed the day at $27.52, down 3.4 per cent.
Link Administration jumped despite a the company outline a worst case scenario revenue impact on the back of last week's federal budget. Although the company suggested a potential $55 million hit to annual revenue, investors appeared to indicate that those estimations were better than expected as shares rose 5.3 per cent to $7.15.
Afterpay Touch shares soared on the news that the company would expand into the US market this week through fashion retailer Urban Outfitters. The company also announced that two former Uber executives would help drive the expansion, sending Afterpay's stock up 7 per cent to $7.45.
A short squeeze sent Blue Sky Alternative Investment stocks higher. The company on Tuesday made a series of downward asset revisions including one fund that saw its value slashed by 35 per cent. Blue Sky shares rose 6.7 per cent to $2.86.
Blue Sky's latest confession - in the form of a series of downward asset revaluations- was another battle won for short sellers that have taken the company on.
But the shorts seem to have become a victim of their own success and were hit by violent short squeeze in early afternoon trade on Tuesday.
Blue Sky Alternative Investments shares were up 21¢ to $2.89, a 7.8 per cent gain, after lunch on Tuesday, despite the company slashing asset values.
The stock jumped as much as 13 per cent off an intraday low of $2.57 recorded earlier in the morning.
Sarah Thompson, Anthony Macdonald and Julie-anne Sprague have the full story here.
Santos's major Chinese shareholder, ENN, has entered a trading halt in Shanghai, sparking speculation that an announcement relating to Harbour Energy's $13.5 billion bid for the Australian oil and gas producer is imminent.
In its notice to the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Tuesday, ENN said it had reached a "preliminary intention with Harbour Energy" on the potential reorganisation of Santos if Harbour's $13.5 billion bid proceeded.
Cole Latimer has the full story here.
BlueScope shares surged near decade highs on Tuesday after the steelmaker raised profit expectations on the back of continued strength in its US operations.
The company has been revived over the past three years on the back of its North Star mill acquisition in the US state of Ohio, and BlueScope said on Tuesday that asset was the main driver behind a 12.3 per cent increase in expected earnings.
BlueScope forecast in February that it would earn about $606 million before interest and tax (EBIT) in the six months to June 30, but it now expects to generate "around $680 million".
Peter Ker has the full story here.
BlueScope shares have surged near fresh decade highs.
Photo: Sylvia LiberAfterpay Touch will launch in the United States this week with one of the country's largest fashion retailers, Urban Outfitters, offering the instalment payments service that has been widely adopted by Millennial shoppers in Australia.
Afterpay also said on Tuesday it has poached two senior executives from Uber to drive expansion into the US market.
Afterpay shares soared on the back of the ASX release, and were trading 10 per cent higher just after 11:00am AEST on Tuesday at $7.64. The stock is back on its way towards a record high of $7.80, after the stock sunk in March on the back of responsible lending concerns.
James Eyers has the full story here.
Afterpay CEO Nick Molnar is driving the US expansion.
Photo: James BrickwoodBlue Sky's student accommodation empire has emerged as the biggest casualty of its promised valuation review, with the carrying value of one fund slashed by 35 per cent, and another beset by project delays led to return capital to its backers.
Short-seller target Blue Sky Alternative Investments told investors on Tuesday that the asset revaluations meant that 2017-18 net profit would take a $7 million hit "primarily driven by reductions in accrued performance fees".
Blue Sky withdrew its profit guidance last week when it admitted to relying on undrawn loans to meet its claim of having $4 billion in fee-earning assets under management.
Vesna Poljak and Jonathan Shapiro have the full story here.
17.4.2018. AFR . (NO BILINE PLEASE) Blue Sky Generics. Undeveloped site at Corner of Cleveland and Flora st Greenslopes.
Citi analysts have upgraded their recommendation for Specialty Fashion Group following the sales of Autograph, Katies, Millers and Rivers to Noni-B for $31 million.
The broker had previously given the company a "neutral" recommendation, upgrading it to a "buy" and increasing the target price from 48¢ to 75¢.
Citi says that the sale would be good for SFG as it retains ownership of its strongest brand, City Chic.
The broker values City Chic at $117 million and says that sales are growing at 5-10 per cent with the potential for the business to generate EBITDA of $19-20 million in FY18e.
City Chic has an expanding international business, primarily in the US and Citi says it expects continued expansion for the business's online sales and offshore distribution.
Australian shares are still sitting lower today as NAB and Telstra continue to weigh the market.
The S&P/ASX 200 index is down 18.2 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 6,117.1.
NAB is down 3 per cent at $27.65 while Telstra shares are down 4 per cent at $2.92.
Woodside Petroleum, Origin Energy and Newcrest Mining are also weighing.
Commonwealth Bank is leading the market, up 0.8 per cent. CSL, Macquarie, Westpac and ANZ are also among the market leaders.
Link Administration remains the best performer today, up 5.9 per cent.
Automotive Holdings has fallen 10 per cent.
Increasing demand for nickel is dwindling warehouse stocks and pushing the price of the commodity higher.
Nickel rose 3.1 per cent on the London Metal Exchange on Monday to be now trading at $14,431 a tonne.
Mine output from New Caledonia and Indonesia mines, two of the largest nickel producing countries in the world, are staggered.
Total mine output for nickel has actually risen 9.2 per cent this year as prices reached multi-year highs in late April.
While the price has fallen since then, prices remain historically high.
A fall in the 30 day London Metal Exchange nickel warehouse stocks in the past few days is also supporting prices.
Nickel prices have fallen from multi-year highs in April but remain high.
Photo: Louie Douvis.