The Australian share market is stronger, with banks rallying on the Financial System Inquiry’s recommendation that banks hold more capital.
Shares in the major banks and the small regional players are firmer, a day after former Commonwealth Bank boss David Murray’s final report was released by Treasurer Joe Hockey.
But Murray’s report was vague about the levels of capital he wanted the banks to hold, which was a relief to investors, Lonsec senior client adviser Michael Heffernan said.
“Fundamentally, I don’t think it’s going to have any major impact even if it was fully implemented on our banks and that’s why they’ve probably shot up,” he said.
“It’s up to the government whether they’re going to act on any of these recommendations – it’s all going to be determined by the political imperatives.”
The big four banks were all more than one per cent firmer. Commonwealth Bank was 89 cents stronger at $82.53, Westpac was up 55 cents at $33.56, ANZ had found 40 cents to $32.50 while National Australia Bank was up 56 cents at $32.96.
Bendigo and Adelaide added 11 cents to $13.13, Bank of Queensland gained 3.5 cents to $12.545, Suncorp put on 11 cents to $14.49 while Macquarie Group found 76 cents to $61.16.
The miners weren’t faring so well, with BHP Billiton down 39 cents to $30.03, Rio Tinto shedding 17 cents to $56.97 and iron ore miner Fortescue Metals six cents weaker at $2.62.
Coca-Cola Amatil lost 11 cents to $9.15 after announcing it will axe 260 jobs as it undertakes a $100 million cost cutting campaign.
Qantas gained 17 cents to $2.27 after the airline said it was expecting to post an underlying net profit after tax of between $300 million and $350 million in the first six months of the 2015 financial year.
Meanwhile, Wall Street touched fresh record highs with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 0.33 per cent as the broad-based S&P 500 index added 0.16 per cent.
KEY FACTS
* At the 1015 AEDT on Monday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was 40.5 points, or 0.76 per cent, higher at 5,375.8.
* The broader All Ordinaries index was up 37.3 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 5,350.9.
* The December share price index futures contract was 52 points higher at 5,385, with 6,969 contracts traded.
* National turnover was 163.1 million securities worth $326 million.
