Home help gives market vital resilience

The S&P/ASX 200 closed essentially flat, down 0.5 points (0.01%) at 4,140.8, while the All Ordinaries was down 3.9 points (0.09%) at 4,203.5. For everyday investors, that kind of small net change after a volatile session suggests the market was broadly stable despite earlier losses — a sign investors were weighing local company updates against negative offshore leads.

RBS Morgans adviser Bill Bishop said the market had been unusually resilient, reflecting investor confidence in the strength of the local economy. Although the Dow Jones slid 519.83 points to 10,719.94, Australia largely resisted the fall and traded in and out of positive territory — indicating local factors and company results helped cushion the impact from US markets.

Telstra shares rose to $2.99 (a gain of about 5.65%) after the company reported a 17% fall in full-year profit but gave forecasts pointing to improvements in revenue and earnings. Investors appeared to reward the guidance that earnings could recover, even though past profit fell.

Major bank shares traded higher: Westpac was at $20.45, ANZ at $20.09, National Australia Bank at $22.90 and Commonwealth Bank at $48.58. For investors, broad strength across the big banks suggests confidence in the sector on that day, but it's important to consider bank-specific fundamentals and reports rather than only short‑term price moves.

Mining heavyweight BHP Billiton fell to $37.93 and Rio Tinto eased to $70.41 (a $1.94 decline). By contrast, gold-related Newcrest Mining rose to $40.74 (up $1.49) as the Sydney gold price jumped to US$1,781.68 per fine ounce — reflecting a move into safe-haven assets amid global market turmoil.

News Corp shares rose to $14.75 after the company reported an 8% increase in net profit. News Corp non‑voting shares were trading at $14.25. The profit uplift appeared to boost investor sentiment in the media giant on that session.

David Jones shares fell to $2.62 after the department store downgraded its profit forecast for the first half of the 2012 fiscal year, citing a poor outlook for consumer sentiment. For retail investors, a profit downgrade typically signals weaker trading conditions and warrants closer attention to sales trends and company guidance.

Preliminary national turnover was 2.53 billion shares worth $7.31 billion, with 456 stocks up, 685 down and 289 steady. Turnover and breadth give a snapshot of market participation and sentiment: higher turnover with more declining stocks suggests broader selling pressure, while balanced breadth indicates mixed investor views across sectors.