Reuters: Hot Stocks: Australia shares slip on banks, post biggest monthly loss in a year

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Australia shares slip on banks, post biggest monthly loss in a year May 31st 2013, 06:52 Fri May 31, 2013 2:52am EDT (Adds details, comments) SYDNEY May 31 (Reuters) - Australian shares reversed early gains to slip 0.1 percent on Friday, as financials declined in a late session sell-off that saw the benchmark fall 5.1 percent for the month, its biggest drop since May 2012. The S&P/ASX 200 index finished 4.1 points lower to 4,926.6. The benchmark fell 0.9 percent to a six-week low. The local market has come under selling pressure recently on a combination of factors, including the Fed stimulus worries and slowing growth in China, Australia's major export market. Flagship banks were mostly weaker. Westpac Banking Corp dropped 1.5 percent after trading ex-dividend. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the country's biggest lender, and National Australia Bank both lost 1.1 percent. "It was looking very top-heavy, very, very profitable in terms of international investors," said Evan Lucas, market strategist at IG, noting the banking sector is down some 8 percent for the month. "The fact that the Australian dollar has been sliding, repatriating funds back into the (foreign) currency was also hitting those profits, so it was a reason for them to hit the button to sell out, we've seen a real rebalancing of those top banks." The Australian dollar was set for its steepest monthly loss in more than a year on Friday, hit by global worries, and was trading at $0.9640 at 0450 GMT, after falling to a 19-month low earlier in the week. Elsewhere, flagship telecommunications provider Telstra Ltd took a further battering, falling 0.6 percent to six-week lows of A$4.74. Real estate and rural services operator Elders Ltd slumped 13 percent after reporting a first-half net loss of A$303.2 million, compared with a net profit of A$47.1 million for the same period a year ago. Leighton Holdings Ltd dived 4.9 percent after it confirmed it had a contract dispute at its Senakin and Satui mines in Indonesia. Bellwether miners buoyed the market for most of the session after London copper futures rose for a second session on Friday, on course to post their first monthly gain in four. BHP Billiton Ltd and Rio Tinto Ltd gained 1.2 percent and 2.3 percent respectively. "Resources are holding on the positive side this month, There is a rotation going as well (from banks), it's a healthy thing to see," said IG's Lucas. U.S. stocks rose on Thursday, rebounding from the previous session's losses as tepid economic data eased concerns the U.S. Federal Reserve would begin to gradually scale back its policy of stimulating growth. New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index climbed 0.9 percent or 40.8 points to finish at 4,511.4, in an almost uninterrupted rally since June 2012. (Reporting by Thuy Ong, additional reporting by Michael Sin; Editing by Eric Meijer) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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