Australian shares trim early gains as bourse operator ASX leads losses
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More news: Australian shares pared early gains to trade roughly flat at 1:45pm AEST.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was up 2.5 points, or 0.03%, to 8,549.9, with six of the 11 sectoral indices in the red.
Santos shares were up 11.3%, having climbed nearly 15% earlier in the session, after confirming a $30 billion takeover offer from a consortium led by Abu Dhabi's Adnoc.
Oil rivals Woodside Energy (3.2%), Ampol (1.7%), Beach Energy (2.7%) and Karoon Energy (2%) also retreated from an initial surge.
Outside of Santos, the three best performing ASX 200 stocks were all uranium miners, with Deep Yellow (20.7%), Paladin Energy (14.5%) and Boss Energy (10.9%) rallying.
ASX (-6.4%) extended earlier losses after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said it will launch an inquiry into the bourse operator. ASIC chair Joe Longo also flagged that the listing of the ASX on its own exchange could be reviewed.
Evolution Mining (-5.7%) and Northern Star Resources (-5.5%) were the next worst performers across the ASX 200 index, as UBS downgraded its ratings and slashed its target prices on the two gold miners.
Australian shares edge higher as Santos soars on Abu Dhabi-led takeover
More news: Australian shares edged higher in early trading, propelled by oil giant Santos, which jumped more than 14% after receiving a $30 billion takeover offer from a consortium led by Abu Dhabi's state-owned oil company Adnoc.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was up 27.8 points, or 0.33%, to 8,575.2 at 10:30am AEST. Seven of the 11 sectoral indices were in the green.
Santos shares climbed more than 14.5%, before paring some gains, leading a 6.5% gain by energy stocks.
Fellow oil producers Woodside Energy (5.8%), Ampol (4%), Beach Energy (5.4%) and Karoon Energy (4.3%) also surged, as ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran threatened gas fields in the region and pushed global crude prices higher.
Uranium miners Deep Yellow (17.4%), Paladin Energy (14.6%) and Boss Energy (12.8%) also rallied. This follows reports that one of Iran's key uranium enrichment facilities was hit by an Israel attack.
Meanwhile, ASX (-4.6%) shares plunged after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission said it will launch an inquiry into the bourse operator's governance, capability and risk management frameworks and practices.
Australian shares to open lower as Israel-Iran attacks drag markets
The news: Australian shares are set drop at the open after equity markets slumped globally on Friday in response to Israel strikes on Iran, escalating tensions in the region and sending investors to safe-haven assets.
The numbers: Updated at 7:30am AEST:
- ASX futures: down 20 points to 8,532
- Wall Street: Dow Jones down 1.79%, S&P 500 down 1.13%, and Nasdaq down 1.3%
- Europe: CAC 40 down 1.04%, DAX down 1.07%, and FTSE 100 0.39%
- Spot gold: up 1.37% at USD3,432 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent up 1.28% to USD75.18/bbl, and US WTI up 0.27% to USD73.18/bbl
- AUD: down 0.67% to 64.88 US cents
- Bitcoin: flat at USD104,730.
The context: Stocks fell globally on Friday as investors turned to safe-haven assets after Israel attacked military and nuclear targets in Iran, and Iran fired missiles in response.
Israel and Iran continued bombardments over the weekend, raising fears the conflict could spread across the key oil-producing region.
Oil prices surged as much as 14% on Friday before settling near USD73 a barrel, and further volatility is expected as the conflict escalates.
Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting this week could present another stumbling block for markets. The central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady when it announces its decision on Wednesday.
The source: Reuters
