SYDNEY: The Australian sharemarket edged slightly lower in early trade following further declines in the US and European markets as Greece battles to avert a default on its debt.
At the 10.15am (AEST) official market open, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 9.2 points, or 0.17 per cent, at 5,529.6, while the broader All Ordinaries index lost 9.1 points, or 0.16 per cent, to 5,532.4.
Rivkin Securities chief executive Scott Schuberg said caution about events in Europe may help curb sharp market moves.
“We remain in territory that is not yet suggestive of a continuation of the broader down trend. It is as though Australian investors are holding out for some brighter news from Europe this week,” he said.
US stocks closed weaker, but pared their steepest losses, following the latest setback in bailout talks between Greece and its European creditors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.6 per cent, while the S&P 500 index lost 0.5 per cent.
Locally, insurer IAG announced today that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway would take a 3.7 per cent stake in the company through a $500 million share placement, that was agreed as part of a wider alliance. The company’s share’s rallied 4.13 per cent to $5.80 at the opening.
The market focus will turn this morning to the 11.30am (AEST) release of the Reserve Bank’s June board meeting minutes.
Elsewhere today, the ANZ-Roy Morgan weekly survey showed a rise in consumer confidence, while the Australian Bureau of Statistics is set to release new motor vehicle sales figures for May.
