Australian Market Flat In Choppy Trade

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is flat amid choppy trade in a shortened session on Thursday, the final trading day of 2015, following the weak cues overnight from Wall Street and a drop in crude oil prices that offset gains in iron ore prices.

In late-morning trades, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index is adding 4.50 points or 0.08 percent to 5,324.40, after touching a low of 5306.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 4.00 points or 0.07 percent to 5,370.40. On Wednesday, the market closed higher for the ninth straight session.

In the mining sector, BHP Billiton is losing 1.5 percent, Rio Tinto is down 0.8 percent and Fortescue Metals is declining 0.2 percent.

Gold miner Newcrest Mining is declining 0.3 percent and Evolution Mining is losing 2 percent after gold prices closed slightly lower overnight.

Among oil stocks, Woodside Petroleum is edging up 0.03 percent, while Oil Search is down 0.3 percent and Santos is declining 1.6 percent following the decline in crude oil prices.

Retailers are mixed. JB Hi-Fi is advancing almost 2 percent, while Harvey Norman is down 0.7 percent and Wesfarmers is lower by 0.3 percent.

In the banking space, ANZ Banking, Westpac, National Australia Bank and Commonwealth Bank are higher in range of 0.03 percent to 0.3 percent.

Regional television broadcaster WIN Corp. has secured a new six-month licensing deal with Nine Entertainment, narrowly avoiding being cut off the air at midnight. However, shares of Nine Entertainment are declining 1.6 percent.

In the currency market, the Australian dollar is steady against the U.S. dollar in quiet holiday trade. In early trades, the local unit was trading at $0.7288, down slightly from Wednesday's close of $0.7289.

On Wall Street, stocks closed lower in a lackluster session on Wednesday, as downbeat housing data raised concerns about the economy. The losses followed a strong performance on Tuesday, leading some traders to lock in profits ahead of the impending New Year's holiday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 117.24 points or 0.7 percent to close lower at 17,603.74, while the S&P 500 index lost 15.01 points or 0.7 percent to 2,063.35. and the Nasdaq Composite index was down 42.09 points or 0.8 percent to end at 5,065.85.

The European markets also declined Wednesday, following another drop in commodity prices. The DAX of Germany dropped 1.08 percent, the CAC 40 of France fell 0.52 percent and the FTSE of the U.K. declined 0.64 percent.

Crude oil prices tumbled Wednesday, dropping back near 6-year lows as Saudi officials sent a clear signal they intend to keep pumping oil at a breakneck pace. WTI crude for February delivery plunged $1.27 or 3.4 percent to end at $36.60 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.