Another miserable day in May

The stockmarket resumed with vigour its downwards run yesterday after a drop on US markets on Tuesday night and a dip in metal prices.
The ASX 200 index fell 103.7 points to 5001.7 points while the All Ordinaries fell 94.5 to 4972.3.
For May as a whole, the ASX 200 recorded a 4.9 per cent drop, month on month, the biggest fall since February of 2003, when the index lost 5.3 per cent.
Shaw Stockbroking head dealer Jamie Spiteri said the weaker performance was expected after falls in other major markets around the world.
"It is no surprise when you consider European markets and US markets were down overnight," he said.
"Our market is reflecting the sensitivity that global markets are having towards the assessment of the short- to medium- term performance of the US economy."
In the US, the three major indices fell as oil prices were higher and there were concerns about falling discretionary spending.
The oil price could not offset the weak sentiment in the local market, where domestic energy stocks moved lower.
Woodside shed $1.70 to $44, Santos retreated 30c to $11.50 and Oil Search dipped 10c lower to $4.06. Beach, however, was up 2c at $1.44.
Major resource stocks tumbled, with BHP Billiton losing $1.10 to $28.23 while Rio Tinto pulled back $3.10 to $78.10. Base metal miner Zinifex moved against the trend, gaining 41c to $11.92 after announcing a $19 million cash injection into its Rosebery mine in Tasmania.
The big banks followed the trend down with ANZ losing 45c to $26.45, the Commonwealth $1.09 to $43.18, NAB $1.13 to $35.09 and Westpac ending 46c lower at $22.94. Macquarie Bank was down $1.91 to $63.99.

Market slips back into gloom

The biggest one-day slump since October has capped off the worst month in more than three years for the volatile Australian sharemarket after a sell-off on Wall Street sent global markets lower.
The benchmark ASX 200 index fell 103.7 points or 2 per cent to 5001.7 points amid fresh concerns about commodity prices and the outlook for US inflation.
Investors said the shake-out has further to go.
"Doom and gloom is the flavour of the day," said Nomura Australia equities strategist Eric Betts. "The market was probably in a manic mood up through April but now we could go another 5 per cent."
Markets across the region followed Wall Street's 1.5 per cent sell-off yesterday. Japan's Nikkei was down 2.5 per cent and Singapore down nearly 2 per cent.
The Australian market finished May down 4.9 per cent, its worst return since February 2003. It has fallen about 7 per cent from record highs in early May but remains up 5 per cent in 2006.
Mining shares fell sharply after metal prices such as copper slumped. BHP fell $1.10 or 4 per cent to $28.23 and Rio Tinto fell $3.10 or 4 per cent to $78.10.
A fall in US consumer confidence hit stocks with earnings in the US. Cement maker Rinker fell 59c or 3 per cent to $18.50 and shopping mall owner Westfield fell 28cor 2 per cent to $16.25.
As investors rushed for the exits, the ASX recorded its second busiest day ever by trades.
Losses were compounded by changes to the MSCI global index that traders say added more than 30 points to the fall in the last 15 minutes of trade.
Goldman Sachs JBWere trader Richard Coppleson said the market was experiencing "the most volatile trading conditions seen in over 20 years" and further weakness was expected.
Inflation concerns in the US would pressure industrial stocks and volatile commodity prices would continue to hit mining stocks, he said.
Nomura's Mr Betts said speculators had pushed the market too hard in recent months.
"We overheated when the market rallied without any particular positive news. Commodities bubbled up, resources followed.
"Banks have been trading at or near record highs so they were overvalued. Two key sectors of the market looked a bit toppy with rising interest rates here and overseas.
"It probably scared the speculators a bit."
But investors were confident about the outlook and searching for a re-entry point, he said.
Colonial First State's Simon Shields told Bloomberg that Australia remained in a strong China-led commodities boom.
"BHP and Rio are extremely undervalued by the market," he said. "What we're seeing now is a long-term upswing that could last 20 to 30 years."
More than $4 billion in dividends will flow into the pockets of Australian investors in coming months, which is expected to support the market.
"The ASX 200 has a very big support level at 4800 and that would become a big buy point and a good rallying level for the buyers to come back in," Goldman Sachs JBWere's Mr Coppleson said.

Stockmarket treads water, lacking a lead

The stockmarket closed marginally lower yesterday as a weaker resources sector weighed upon the bourse and overall trading lacked direction.
There was no lead from the United States and the United Kingdom markets because both were closed on Monday for public holidays.
"It was a pretty quiet day," CMC Markets senior dealer Phil Martin said.
The ASX 200 index was off 4.1 points to 5105.4 while the All Ordinaries dipped 3.1 to 5066.8.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the June share price index contract was off three points at 5092, on a volume of 10,307.
In the resource sector, BHP Billiton was down 14c at $29.33, Rio Tinto reversed $1.04 to $81.20, and Alumina shed 11c to $6.93.
New uranium explorer Aura Energy closed its first day of trading on the Australian Stock Exchange at 20c, the same as its issue price.
Oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum gained 10c to $45.70 and Santos added 10c to $11.80. Oil Search finished 1c higher at $4.16.
The National Australia Bank fell 1c to $36.22, the ANZ fell 5c to $26.90, the Commonwealth Bank 25c to $44.27 and Westpac 5c to $23.40.
Retailer Coles Myer was up 11c to $11.48 and supermarket rival Woolworths was 3c higher at $18.98 as new trade figures showed that retail spending remained resilient in April despite high petrol prices and speculation of an interest rate rise.
Telstra slipped 3c to $3.73 and Optus owner Singapore Telecom dropped 1c to $2.12.
News Corp was 9c weaker at $26.32 while its non-voters retreated 8c to $25.07. PBL shed 4c to $18.88 and Fairfax was down 7c to $3.80.
In the gold sector, Newmont was up 5c at $6.82, Newcrest fell 9c to $20.56, Lihir Gold eased 3c to $3.06 and Bendigo was down 6c at $2.06. AngloGold Ashanti was down 15c to $12.15.
Emperor dropped 10c to 40c after placing 100 million of its shares at 40c.
The price of gold in Sydney was $US655.40 per fine ounce, up $US7.40 on yesterday's close.
Entertainment group Village Roadshow rose 9c to $2.21 as it announced the sale of "non-core" cinema operations in New Zealand, Fiji, Austria and the UK.
Cement and lime producer Adelaide Brighton rose 3c to $2.45 as it predicted its 2006 profit to rise to between $92 million and $96 million.
The top traded stock by volume was building, automotive and plastics products firm Nylex, with 42.57 million shares worth $2.29 million changing hands. Nylex was up 1.5c at 6.1c.
Diversified chemicals and laboratory company Campbell Brothers improved 20c to $15.40 after forecasting net profit growth of at least 20 per cent for this year.
National turnover was 910.25 million shares worth $2.89 billion, with 537 stocks up, 542 down and 358 unchanged.

Investors swoop on share bargains

The sharemarket rose sharply as higher commodity prices helped resource stocks regain more of the ground lost in recent weeks.
The ASX 200 rose 55.8 points, or 1.1 per cent, to 5109.5 while the All Ordinaries rose 55.2 points, or 1.1 per cent, to 5069.9.
CMC Markets senior dealer Phil Martin said buyers had again swooped on many of the stocks that had been hurt by the recent sell-off.
"We saw another day of investors flocking back into the market today," he said. "Though I think people are still a little bit cautious because there is a heightened awareness of the volatility that is about at the moment."
Solid gains in base metal prices boosted the big miners. BHP Billiton rose 92c to $29.47 and Rio Tinto $1.83 to $82.24.
The major banks closed higher. NAB rose 48c to $36.23, ANZ 18c to $26.95, Westpac 12c to $23.45 and CBA 12c to $44.52.
In the media sector, PBL fell 11c to $18.92 and John Fairfax 1c to $3.87. West Australian Newspapers rose 13c to $8.80 and Seven 3c to $8.33.
ABB Grain rose 20c to $7.50 after boosting its first-half net profit by 24 per cent.
Internet service provider iiNet was the top traded stock with 53.66 million shares worth $44.35 million changing hands.
The company was savaged by investors, crashing 84c, or 49.7 per cent, to 85c as it resumed trading after being suspended for five weeks.
The company revised its annual profit forecast on Friday, saying it would post earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of $26.4 million, well below previous guidance of $40.1 million.
Resort and travel agency owner S8 rose 5c to $4.05 after launching a $NZ235 million ($196 million) takeover bid for Gullivers Travel Group, which rose 57c, or 40.4 per cent, to $1.98 on news of the offer.
Telstra fell 2c to $3.76 and Singapore Telecom was steady at $2.13 after its 100 per cent-owned telco Optus unveiled plans aimed at reconfiguring home phone line rentals.
In new listings, commodities-based pooled development fund MEC Resources made a disappointing debut on the ASX, opening at 19c, compared with its 20c issue price, and closing at 15c.
Platinum explorer Platina Resources opened and closed at 19.5c, a minor discount to its 20c issue price, after its initial public offering raised $6.2 million.
Among the retail stocks, Coles Myer rallied 21c to $11.37 while Woolworths rose 5c to $18.95.
Deep vein thrombosis drug developer Alchemia said it had acquired control of takeover-target Meditech Research after obtaining 64.9 per cent acceptances. Meditech was steady at 13.5c while Alchemia eased 1c to $1.22.
Gold stocks were mixed. Lihir Gold rose 12c to $3.09, Newcrest Mining was unchanged at $20.65 and Kingsgate Consolidated fell 14c to $4.80.
Shares in property and tourism investment group MFS rose 5c to $1.24.
MFS said it planned to raise up to $100 million to form a new unlisted company which will invest in alternative investment fund managers.
Ailing winemaker McGuigan Simeon Wines was in a trading halt pending a detailed analysis of its stock position and outlook.
It last traded at $2.70.

Market regains lost ground

The resource and banking sectors surged back into favour on Friday, lifting the sharemarket 1.5 per cent as bargain hunters swooped after taking heavy losses earlier in the week.
The two heavyweight sectors, spurred on by strong Asian bourses and a lift on Wall Street on Thursday, helped push the market back above 5000 points.
The ASX 200 index rose 76.9 points to 5053.7 and the All Ordinaries 75.3 points to 5014.7.
For the week the ASX 200 fell 47.2 points and the All Ords 46.5 points.
ABN Amro Morgan client adviser Margaret Morrissey warned that the volatility in the market could continue over the next month as investors moved to crystallise tax losses by the end of the financial year.
"The volatility still remains at this stage," Ms Morrissey said. "There was a lot of stock picking today after the market's fall in recent times."
BHP Billiton rose 4 per cent or $1.10 to $28.55 and Rio Tinto 4.6 per cent or $3.56 to $80.41. Oil and gas producer Woodside surged $1.10 to $44.10.
Westpac rose 48c to $23.33, National Australia Bank 52c to $35.75, Commonwealth Bank 41c to $44.40 and ANZ 34c to $26.77.
Gold stocks were also stronger after the price of the metal bounced.
The spot price in Sydney closed at $US650.60 an ounce, up $US4.90 on Thursday's close.
Newcrest Mining rose 49c to $20.65, Newmont 18c to $6.80 and Lihir Gold 21c to $2.97.
Telstra fell 1c to $3.78 and Optus owner Singapore Telecom rose 2c to $2.13.
Retailers were weaker. Coles Myer fell 8c to $11.16 and Woolworths slipped 6c to $18.90.
Woolworths this week named supermarket lieutenant Michael Luscombe as successor to retiring chief executive Roger Corbett.
Upmarket retailer David Jones eased 2c to $2.78 while Harvey Norman rose 9c to $3.93.
Shares in clothing and footwear company Colorado lost 5c to $3.37. The company is set to announce a new chief executive by the end of July as it rearranges its internal structure to overcome a poor 2005-06 result.
Babcock & Brown surged $1.17 to $19.97 after the investment firm upgraded its guidance for earnings growth this financial year to 35 per cent from 20 per cent.
AGL lifted 26c to $17.01 while Alinta eased 2c to $10.28 as the competition watchdog said it expected to make a decision on the energy groups' proposed merger next month.
Seven Network was steady at $8.30 after confirming it had signed a long-term partnership with V8 Supercars for the broadcast television rights to the championship series.
BHP was the most traded stock on the market. More than 41.85 million of its shares changed hands for a total value of $1.13 billion.

Price falls continue across the board

ANOTHER day of lower metal prices and the sharemarket closed lower as both the big miners and major banks backtracked.
The ASX 200 was down 60.9 points to 4976.8, while the All Ordinaries fell 55.6 to 4939.4.
Macquarie Equities associate director Lucinda Chan said this was a continuation of the sell-off seen earlier in the week.
"Now things are just coming off more and getting a bit stabilised, things might get back to a more reasonable pricing level now," Ms Chan said. "The weakness has taken everything down across the board."
However, investors should not be alarmed by the correction, she said.
"The fundamentals haven't changed it's just that the prices have really been pushed up hard by fund managers.
"These guys have got big, deep pockets and they can come and go when they choose to."
The big miners were hit by the stalled metals prices, with BHP Billiton falling 84c to $26.45 and Rio Tinto down 39c to $76.85. Base metals miner Zinifex tumbled 28c to $10.26. It was trading at $13.54 a fortnight ago.
A softer oil price pushed energy producers lower with Woodside 82c weaker at $43, Oil Search 6c lower to $3.98 and Santos off 21c to $10.90. Hardman was down 7c at $1.80.
Banks fell, with ANZ sliding 22c to $26.43, the Commonwealth down 22c to $43.99, NAB 38c weaker at $35.23 and Westpac off 30c to $22.85.
Macquarie Bank fell 15c to $64 and St George Bank shed 41c to $28.99.
Upmarket retailer David Jones rose 11c to $2.80 after reporting a 3.3 per cent increase in sales for the three months to April 29 on solid sales of clothes, shoes, cosmetics and home entertainment products.
Harvey Norman added 6c to $3.84 while Coles Myer dipped 8c to $11.24 and Woolworths fell 13c to $18.96.
Telstra shares eased 3c to $3.79 after the telecom sliced $700 million off its capital expenditure guidance.
In media, PBL was 4c lower at $18.95 after it said it was considering partially listing its Macau casino joint venture, confirming market speculation. Fairfax fell 4c to $3.82.
Toll road operator Macquarie Infrastructure Group, steady at $3.29, will spend up to £70 million ($174.22 million) on a link to one of its main toll roads in the UK's West Midlands.
Evans & Tate fell 1.5c, or 15 per cent, to 8.5c. The West Australian winemaker says it will "strenuously resist" an application to wind it up by Australian Beverage Distributors.
Investment and insurance provider Tower rose 20c to $2.55 after reporting a first-half net profit of $NZ32.5 million ($27.5 million), up from $NZ21 million.
The price of gold in Sydney slid $US23.90 to $US645.10 an ounce.
Goldminers headed south with it, Newcrest dropping 43c to $20.16, Newmont losing 23c to $6.62 and Lihir down 16c to $2.76. It was $3.64 a fortnight ago. Bendigo fell 3c to $1.95.
Novogen fell 9c to $2.68. The drug developer has appointed Professor Alan Husband as an executive director.
The most traded stock on the market was Telstra with more than 47 million shares traded for $178.6 million.

Price falls continue across the board

ANOTHER day of lower metal prices and the sharemarket closed lower as both the big miners and major banks backtracked.
The ASX 200 was down 60.9 points to 4976.8, while the All Ordinaries fell 55.6 to 4939.4.
Macquarie Equities associate director Lucinda Chan said this was a continuation of the sell-off seen earlier in the week.
"Now things are just coming off more and getting a bit stabilised, things might get back to a more reasonable pricing level now," Ms Chan said. "The weakness has taken everything down across the board."
However, investors should not be alarmed by the correction, she said.
"The fundamentals haven't changed it's just that the prices have really been pushed up hard by fund managers.
"These guys have got big, deep pockets and they can come and go when they choose to."
The big miners were hit by the stalled metals prices, with BHP Billiton falling 84c to $26.45 and Rio Tinto down 39c to $76.85. Base metals miner Zinifex tumbled 28c to $10.26. It was trading at $13.54 a fortnight ago.
A softer oil price pushed energy producers lower with Woodside 82c weaker at $43, Oil Search 6c lower to $3.98 and Santos off 21c to $10.90. Hardman was down 7c at $1.80.
Banks fell, with ANZ sliding 22c to $26.43, the Commonwealth down 22c to $43.99, NAB 38c weaker at $35.23 and Westpac off 30c to $22.85.
Macquarie Bank fell 15c to $64 and St George Bank shed 41c to $28.99.
Upmarket retailer David Jones rose 11c to $2.80 after reporting a 3.3 per cent increase in sales for the three months to April 29 on solid sales of clothes, shoes, cosmetics and home entertainment products.
Harvey Norman added 6c to $3.84 while Coles Myer dipped 8c to $11.24 and Woolworths fell 13c to $18.96.
Telstra shares eased 3c to $3.79 after the telecom sliced $700 million off its capital expenditure guidance.
In media, PBL was 4c lower at $18.95 after it said it was considering partially listing its Macau casino joint venture, confirming market speculation. Fairfax fell 4c to $3.82.
Toll road operator Macquarie Infrastructure Group, steady at $3.29, will spend up to £70 million ($174.22 million) on a link to one of its main toll roads in the UK's West Midlands.
Evans & Tate fell 1.5c, or 15 per cent, to 8.5c. The West Australian winemaker says it will "strenuously resist" an application to wind it up by Australian Beverage Distributors.
Investment and insurance provider Tower rose 20c to $2.55 after reporting a first-half net profit of $NZ32.5 million ($27.5 million), up from $NZ21 million.
The price of gold in Sydney slid $US23.90 to $US645.10 an ounce.
Goldminers headed south with it, Newcrest dropping 43c to $20.16, Newmont losing 23c to $6.62 and Lihir down 16c to $2.76. It was $3.64 a fortnight ago. Bendigo fell 3c to $1.95.
Novogen fell 9c to $2.68. The drug developer has appointed Professor Alan Husband as an executive director.
The most traded stock on the market was Telstra with more than 47 million shares traded for $178.6 million.

Market cheers as commodity and metal prices rise

The stockmarket returned to positive territory after an overnight rise in commodity prices boosted the resources sector.
The ASX 200 rose 23.9 points to 5037.7, while the All Ordinaries rose 28.7 points to 4995.
Macquarie Equities adviser Helen Spencer said commodity prices and resources held up the market.
"After a rally in the metals on the London Metals Exchange and stronger commodity prices overnight, we've seen a rebound in the recent sluggish performance of the resource sector," Ms Spencer said.
"The resource sector has surged hugely and while some gains are still there at the end, many are below their highs of earlier today.
"Without the resources, though, we'd certainly be in negative territory."
BHP Billiton led the way, rising 80c to $28.29, while Rio Tinto rose $2.59 to $77.24.
The big four banks were mixed. ANZ rose 42c to $26.65 and National Australia Bank rose 21c to $35.61, while Westpac fell 23c to $23.15.
Commonwealth Bank fell 34c to $44.21 after introducing two new banking accounts offering unlimited electronic and branch transactions.
Shares in embattled wheat exporter AWB rose 4c to $4.25 after it maintained its guidance despite reporting a half-year net profit of $45.97 million, which was less than half that of the same period last year.
Among retail stocks, David Jones fell 1c to $2.69 and Coles Myer fell 3c to $11.32, while Harvey Norman firmed 1c to $3.78. Woolworths rose 4c to $19.09 after announcing its former director of supermarkets, Michael Luscombe, will be appointed chief operating officer from June 1, ahead of succeeding incumbent chief executive Roger Corbett on October 1.
Shares in Australia's biggest grocery wholesaler, Metcash, fell 22c to $4.30 after it reported a 36 per cent fall in annual net profit to $81.18 million.
Drugs maker and distributor Sigma Pharmaceuticals said it was confident it was on track to achieve underlying profit growth of about 15 per cent this financial year. Its shares fell 5c to $2.51.
Telstra fell 1c to $3.82 while rival and Optus-parent Singapore Telecommunications fell 2c to $2.14.
ASX rose $2.13 to $31.38 and the SFE rose $1.06 to $15.90 after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said it would not oppose a merger of the two companies.
The media sector was mixed. News Corp fell 4c to $25.76, its non-voting scrip rose 5c to $24.64, Fairfax fell 6c to $3.86, while Publishing & Broadcasting rose 97c to $18.99.
The spot price of gold in Sydney closed up $US13 at $US669.00 per fine ounce.
Gold stocks rose in response to the price hike.
Newcrest rose 49c $20.59, Newmont 15c to $6.85 and Lihir 27c to $2.92.
The top traded stock by volume was copper and gold miner Oxiana, after 35.15 million shares worth $102.18 million changed hands. Its shares rose 26c to $2.93.
National market turnover was 1.32 billion shares worth $6.30 billion.
The market recorded 713 stocks rising, 431 falling and 280 unchanged.

Market braces for more volatility

The sharemarket continues to skate on thin ice, shedding more value as it awaits news of US inflation and the future of commodity prices.
In a volatile day of thin trading volumes, the ASX 200 fell within a hair's breadth of the 5000 mark on opening. Despite rallying in the afternoon, the bourse tumbled into the close, finishing 17 points lower at 5013.8. It has now shed 393 points or 7.3 per cent in the past nine days.
But a small rebound in commodity prices on Monday night helped the Australian dollar rebound above US75c. It closed half a US cent stronger at US75.31c.
A senior dealer at CMC Markets, Phil Martin, said a sense of caution had spread across all sectors of the sharemarket prompting trading volumes to fall away.
"Basically I think there is a general nervousness in all the sectors," Mr Martin said.
"There's still a lot of profit taking going on and a lot of uncertainty."
Bad news on US inflation or further commodity prices falls would see the market break lower, he said.
"If there is an expectation that rates are going to move higher and resource stocks are sold, then that's going to create some [further] anxiety among investors."
Base metals recouped some losses in trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday night, but not enough to recover substantially from the losses of the past two weeks.
Copper for three-month delivery finished at $7590 a tonne, against $7550 previously. Aluminium gained $40 to $2760 and nickel rose $375 to $20,875.
But BHP Billiton continued to take a hammering, with the shares falling another 40c to $27.49, despite a government ruling securing it against challenges from third parties to use its railway in Western Australia's Pilbara.
BHP accounted for 7 points of the market's 17-point loss.
The banking sector also took a hit with the Commonwealth Bank dropping 30c to $44.55.
An economist at Macquarie Bank, Daniel McCormack, said the pullback in commodity prices would have no significant impact on Australia's near-term economic outlook, but could lead to a weakening in Australia's terms of trade.
"It is only if we saw further commodity price falls of around 20 per cent that it would have material consequences for Australia's economic outlook," he said.

Market braces for more volatility

The sharemarket continues to skate on thin ice, shedding more value as it awaits news of US inflation and the future of commodity prices.
In a volatile day of thin trading volumes, the ASX 200 fell within a hair's breadth of the 5000 mark on opening. Despite rallying in the afternoon, the bourse tumbled into the close, finishing 17 points lower at 5013.8. It has now shed 393 points or 7.3 per cent in the past nine days.
But a small rebound in commodity prices on Monday night helped the Australian dollar rebound above US75c. It closed half a US cent stronger at US75.31c.
A senior dealer at CMC Markets, Phil Martin, said a sense of caution had spread across all sectors of the sharemarket prompting trading volumes to fall away.
"Basically I think there is a general nervousness in all the sectors," Mr Martin said.
"There's still a lot of profit taking going on and a lot of uncertainty."
Bad news on US inflation or further commodity prices falls would see the market break lower, he said.
"If there is an expectation that rates are going to move higher and resource stocks are sold, then that's going to create some [further] anxiety among investors."
Base metals recouped some losses in trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday night, but not enough to recover substantially from the losses of the past two weeks.
Copper for three-month delivery finished at $7590 a tonne, against $7550 previously. Aluminium gained $40 to $2760 and nickel rose $375 to $20,875.
But BHP Billiton continued to take a hammering, with the shares falling another 40c to $27.49, despite a government ruling securing it against challenges from third parties to use its railway in Western Australia's Pilbara.
BHP accounted for 7 points of the market's 17-point loss.
The banking sector also took a hit with the Commonwealth Bank dropping 30c to $44.55.
An economist at Macquarie Bank, Daniel McCormack, said the pullback in commodity prices would have no significant impact on Australia's near-term economic outlook, but could lead to a weakening in Australia's terms of trade.
"It is only if we saw further commodity price falls of around 20 per cent that it would have material consequences for Australia's economic outlook," he said

All Ords slips back under 5000 mark

The All Ordinaries index has slumped below 5000 points as falls in commodity prices caused investors to dump resource, gold and oil stocks.
Shaw Stockbroking's head dealer, Jamie Spiteri, said resource stocks contributed the most to the fall as the broader market was relatively steady.
"We've had considerable volatility across equity markets brought about by the increased volatility in recent weeks of commodity prices and today we're seeing the fallout of that volatility," Mr Spiteri said.
"The gold price took a big fall on Friday evening and subsequently in Asian trading here."
The ASX 200 fell 70.1 points to 5030.8 and the All Ords 73.9 to 4987.3. The All Ords last closed below 5000 points on March 23.
BHP Billiton fell 85c to $27.89 and Rio Tinto $3.08 to $75.22.
Zinc and lead miner Zinifex fell $1.61 or 14.9 per cent to $9.20, and copper and gold miner Oxiana 35c or 11.7 per cent to $2.63.
Oxiana was the top traded stock by volume, with 42.26 million shares worth $114.46 million changing hands.
Oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum fell $1.50 to $41.65 and Santos 14c to $11.18.
In the gold sector, Newcrest fell $2.30 to $20.08 and Lihir 31c to $2.57 as the price of gold in Sydney closed at $US645.10 an ounce, down $US42.90 on Friday's close.
Among the banks, National Australia Bank fell 15c to $35.90, ANZ 11c to $26.10, Westpac 16c to $23.34 and Commonwealth Bank 14c to $44.85.
Media group PMP fell 2.5c to $1.50 as it said a new catalogue delivery system was expected to improve its bottom line.
Wheat exporter AWB rose 7c to $4.14 after it formed a partnership with New Zealand dairy group Fonterra to expand services to the dairy industry in Australia and New Zealand.
Domain-name registration firm Melbourne IT slipped 3c to $1.72 after saying it was set to acquire WebCentral.
Shares in newly floated junior oil and gas explorer Burleson Energy closed at 20c, the issue price.
Shares in Housewares International fell 32c or 17.8 per cent to $1.48 after it cut its profit guidancefor this financial year to $16-$18 million, down from a forecast of $20.5-$22.5 million.
Telstra was steady at $3.83.
Renewable fuel company Australian Biodiesel maintained its annual profit target at $8.173 million, in line with its prospectus forecast. The shares rose 3.5c to $1.50.
Uranium explorer Nova Energy, steady at $1.30, has been granted two exploration tenements in West Africa and is preparing to launch an exploration program.

Resources drag down shares

The sharemarket was dragged lower by the resources sector on Friday, ending a week of significant decline. The ASX 200 index was down 18.4 points to 5100.9 and the All Ordinaries fell 15 to 5061.2.
Macquarie Equities adviser Helen Spencer said the market had been subdued after on Thursday recording its biggest one-day fall since last October.
"There's been some caution on the back of recent volatility in the commodity prices and that has created some profit-taking in the resources sector," Ms Spencer said on Friday. "The market has finished just below par after yesterday's fairly significant pullback."
The ASX 200 fell 4.3 per cent over the week after closing at 5329.5 points last Friday and the All Ordinaries was down 4.2 per cent after finishing trading at 5285.5 at the end of last week.
Rio Tinto was one of the biggest movers, falling 40c to $78.30. BHP Billiton slipped 26c to $28.74.
Rio announced late on Thursday it had pinned down a 19 per cent price increase from Japan's steel mills for iron fines for the year. Credit Suisse First Boston said the price hike would underwrite higher future dividends and cash returns for Rio. Investors are now awaiting the result of BHP's negotiations.
Woodside Petroleum was up 15c to $43.15 and Santos 2c to $11.32 as the price of crude oil offshore rose US76c to $US69.45 a barrel.
Banks were also down after a sluggish day for the financial sector. CBA fell 21c to $44.99, NAB lost 21c to $36.05, ANZ was down 19c to $26.21 and Westpac shed 15c to $23.50.
Insurers were also weaker, with QBE down 27c to $22.73 and Suncorp Metway off 24c to $19.42.
Diversified explorer A-Cap Resources hit the ASX boards at a 10c premium to its 20c issue price after raising $3 million in its initial public offering. The stock closed at 36c.
PBL fell 9c to $18.99. The group's internet portal ninemsn announced that its chief executive Martin Hoffman had resigned.
Goldminer Newcrest was up 10c to $22.38, Lihir Gold was unchanged at $2.88 and Newmont down 18c to $6.75.
The retail sector was mixed, with Harvey Norman down 3c to $3.85, Coles Myer off 6c to $11.11, Woolworths up 9c to $19.02 and David Jones unchanged at $2.71.
Telstra fell 1c to $3.83, while Optus parent Singapore Telecom was up 1c at $2.20.
The top traded stock by volume was Telstra.

Banks and miners lead market rout

The sharemarket suffered its biggest one-day fall since October last year, with mining and banking stocks the worst hit as fears of inflation in the US rippled around world markets.
The ASX 200 fell 121 points from the bell but clawed back some ground by the close to be down 98.2 points, or 1.9 per cent, at 5119.3.
The All Ordinaries tumbled 95.9 points to close at 5076.2.
The losses this week have seen the market give up all the gains it has made since the beginning of April, with both the ASX 200 and the All Ordinaries also registering their biggest falls over five days since October last year.
Aequs Securities institutional dealer Ric Klusman said most of the damage had been done by the mining and banking stocks.
"We are particularly seeing a rationalisation in the resource stocks with money moving back into the industrials," he said.
Mr Klusman said the marginally positive close on Wednesday had been a "dead cat bounce" and he expected to see another couple of days of selling. "I wouldn't be surprised to see us lose another 100 points."
US stocks were hit hard on Wednesday after economic data showing rising inflation sparked fresh fears the Fed would continue to raise rates. The Dow Jones index tumbled 214.28 points to 11,205.61.
Locally, heavyweight miners led the sell-off, with BHP Billiton falling $1.11 or 3.7 per cent to $29 and Rio Tinto slumping $3.10 or 3.8 per cent to $78.70.
Falling commodity prices helped drive most miners lower, with Oxiana plummeting 25c to $3.04, Zinifex diving 80c to $11 and Alumina down 32c to $7.10.
The weakening oil price hurt petroleum stocks, with Santos sliding 24c to $11.30 despite announcing encouraging flow results from the third appraisal well at its Jeruk oil discovery in Indonesia.
Woodside Petroleum fell $1 to $43 after the company said it would co-operate with an Australian Federal Police probe into its activities in Mauritania.
Banks also fell, with ANZ down 60c to $26.40, NAB off 74c to $36.26, Westpac 33c weaker at $23.65 and the Commonwealth falling 40c to $45.20.
James Packer's PBL shot up 43c to $19.08 after announcing it would purchase a 6480sqm development site in Macau for $255 million with its joint venture partner.
Lion Nathan was a rare bright spot, climbing 21c to $8.41 after posting a 10 per cent rise in first half net profit to a record $148.9 million.
AMP fell 26c to $9.48 despite announcing it could increase its guidance for the growth in value in the wake of changes to the taxation of superannuation.
My Net Fone debuted at 22c, 2c higher than the 20c issue price, before closing at 24.5c.
Securities in Cheviot Kirribilly Vineyard Property Group opened and closed at its $2.50 issue price.
Telstra rose 2c to $3.84 while Optus owner Singapore Telecom fell 2c to $2.19.
Gold stocks were savaged, with Newcrest sagging 93c to $22.28, Lihir sliding 27c or 8.6 per cent to $2.88, Kingsgate Consolidated down 25c to $4.92 and Bendigo down 8c to $2.20.
Hardman Resources fell 10c to $1.885 as chairman and founder Alan Burns said he would be stepping down from the position of chairman in the near future.

Banks sold off in a volatile session but miners step up

The stockmarket pulled itself over the line to close in positive territory as investors sold off banking shares.
The market moved from strength to weakness and back again during the course of the day following a recovery in metals prices.
The ASX 200 took a tiny step up to close 0.1 points higher at 5217.5 points while the All Ordinaries gained 1.8 points to 5172.1 points.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange the June share price contract was down three points at 5214 on a volume of 17,609.
ABN Amro Morgan broker Lisa Sadgrove said it had been another volatile day on the market with high volumes of stock traded.
"We started off stronger and … we've dipped into negative territory again," she said.
"There was a lot of weakness in the banking sector today so it looks like they are pulling money out of banks and financials generally. But there was strength today in BHP and Rio."
BHP Billiton picked up 18c to $30.11 after completing a $US2 billion ($2.6 billion) share buyback while rival Rio Tinto fell 75c to $81.80.
The spot price of gold recovered the losses from earlier in the week, soaring $US31.10 an ounce on Tuesday's close to finish at $US707.60 an ounce yesterday.
The goldminers responded. Newcrest rose 20c to $23.21, Newmont 1c to $7.06 and Lihir 12c to $3.15.
Key energy stocks were mostly weaker despite a slight recovery in world oil prices overnight.
Woodside fell 12c to $44.00 and Santos 4c to $11.54 but Oil Search rose 6c to $4.24.
Some of the major banks took a tumble. Westpac fell 5c to $23.98, ANZ 41c to $27.00 and Commonwealth Bank 9c to $45.60. National Australia Bank bucked the trend, rising 10c to $37.00.
Other financial stocks fell too. St George Bank dropped 4c to $30.06 and Macquarie Bank 47c to $69.18.
Macquarie announced a $700 million capital raising to fund its international expansion plans.
Ten Network rose 5c to $3.17 after winning certain first-release rights to 20th Century Fox programs.
Other media stocks were mixed. PBL slipped 5c to $18.65, John Fairfax increased 5c to $3.93 and News Corp rose 19c to $25.88. The non-voting shares of News moved 31c higher to $24.66.
CSR fell 6c to $3.95 after posting a 4.4 per cent drop in annual net profit to $305 million.
Telstra picked up 3c to $3.82 while the owner of rival mobile network Optus, Singapore Telecommunications, moved 6c higher to $2.21.
Telstra was also the most traded stock on the market. More than 45.4 million of its shares swapped hands, worth a total of $173.83 million.
Market turnover reached 1.37 billion, collectively worth $5.44 billion, with 622 stocks moving up, 500 down and 334 unchanged.

Wall St halts market advance

The sharemarket closed in the red following a sell-off on Wall Street but resource stocks spared it from the losses suffered by Asian markets.
The S&P/ASX 200 finished down 35 points at 5329.5, well off the session low, where it was sporting a loss of 50.5 points.
Resource stocks were torn between following the rest of the market down and rising on stronger commodity prices.
EL & C Baillieu Stockbroking director Richard Morrow said the market was rattled by the sharp fall in Wall Street, where the Dow Jones closed 141.92 points lower at 11,500.73 on fears that the US Federal Reserve might not be about to cease lifting interest rates after all.
"We're doing better than the region," said Mr Morrow.
Japan's Nikkei Average dropped 1.5 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 1.4 per cent.
Metals such as aluminium, nickel and zinc made gains while the spot price of crude oil settled $US1.19 higher at $US73.32 a barrel in New York. The spot price of gold ended $US10.40 higher at $US720.70 an ounce in Sydney trade.
BHP Billiton finished 28¢ lower at $31.72 and Woodside Petroleum fell 37¢ to $47.20 but mining giant Rio Tinto gained 82¢ to $87.97.
Among the goldminers, Newmont fell 9¢ to $7.50 but Newcrest rose 16¢ to $24.80.
The leading financial stocks lost ground, with National Australia Bank falling 31¢ to $36.95, Commonwealth slipping 26¢ to $45.85 and Westpac losing 19¢ to $24.26.
Financial services group AMP dipped 5¢ to $9.71 while Macquarie Bank pulled back 24¢ to $70.37. ANZ bucked the trend, rising 15¢ to $28.53.
Media conglomerate News Corp's non-voting shares rose 11¢ to $23.81 and its voting scrip gained 9¢ to $25.15. But Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd shed 25¢ to $18.95 and Fairfax offloaded 8¢ to $3.90.
DCA Group was also a loser, plunging 72¢, or nearly 19 per cent, to $3.08 after it issued a profit warning.
Customer contact company Salmat also plummeted, closing down 54¢, or 12.3 per cent, at $3.85 after losing its catalogue distribution contract with Coles Myer.
Coles Myer rose 12¢ to $10.99 while rival supermarket group Woolworths fell 2¢ to $18.78.
Among other blue chips, Qantas descended 7¢ to $3.33 and Telstra fell 3¢ to $3.76.
The top traded stock by volume was Indian copper miner Aditya Birla, which made its ASX debut with 55.75 million shares changing hands for $186.40 million. It finished at $3.19 — up $1.24, or nearly 64 per cent, from the issue price of $1.95.
The dollar rose almost half a US cent, selling at US77.64¢ at 5pm compared with US77.18¢ on Thursday and US76.84¢ at the end of last week.
Analysts said it looked to be preparing for an assault on US78¢ under the influence of surging metals prices.

Late resources rally propels market higher

The sharemarket closed higher after the resources sector rallied late in the day in response to soaring commodity prices.
The ASX 200 rose 12.3 points to 5364.5 and the All Ordinaries 12.9 points to 5318.2.
Fat Prophets director of funds management Angus Geddes said strong gains in the prices of base metals, gold and oil were behind the resources rally, which reached its peak in the last hour of trade.
"I think people were looking ahead to trading tonight in London and New York and there is just a view that the positive tone of resource stocks is going to continue around the world," he said.
BHP Billiton closed up 65c at an all-time high of $32 and Rio Tinto surged $1.40 to $87.15.
NAB was the best performer among the big banks, rising 46c to $37.26 after posting a first-half net profit of $1.99 billion.
Chief executive John Stewart said the bank would not rule out making acquisitions in Britain.
Westpac dived 30c to $24.45, ANZ fell 7c to $28.38 and the Commonwealth was down 15c to $46.11.
News Corp surged 74c to $25.06 and the non-voting stock climbed 65c to $23.70 after the media group doubled its third-quarter profit.
Transport group Toll Holdings rallied 41c to $15.41 after finally succeeding in taking over stevedore Patrick Corp, which climbed 22c to $9.12.
Oil and gas stocks were mixed. Santos climbed 9c to $12.22, while Woodside Petroleum slipped 23c to $47.57 after the Australian Federal Police confirmed it was investigating allegations the company offered bribes in Mauritania.
Building materials maker Rinker sank 33c to $21.07 despite forecasting another strong year of revenue and profit growth and handing back $819 million to shareholders.
Agricultural and industrial company Futuris Corp eased 1c to $2.22 after announcing it wanted to increase its stake in hardwood plantation manager Integrated Tree Cropping.
Iluka Resources fell 1c to $7.43. The mineral sands producer has maintained its guidance of a net profit for its continuing business of $115 million to $125 million for the full year.
Financial services group Praemium debuted on the stock exchange at a 37.5 per cent premium. Shares in the company began trading at 55c, 15c up on the issue price of 40c, and closed at 49c.
The big retailers were lower. Woolworths fell 12c to $18.80 and Coles Myer 6c to $10.87.
In the gold sector, Newcrest Mining rose 59c to $24.64 and Newmont added 10c to $7.59.
Lihir Gold fell 3c to $3.57 and Kingsgate Consolidated dipped 10c to $5.70.
Telstra fell 1c to $3.79.
The top traded stock by volume was mining investor Imperial One with 82.45 million shares worth $2.79 million changing hands as the share price rose 0.3c to 3.5c.

Records eclipsed as bourse digests Costello's plans

The sharemarket closed higher yesterday as positive sentiment from the budget kicked the major indices into record territory.
Higher base metal prices overnight on Tuesday also helped the big miners pick up extra value.
The benchmark ASX 200 index gained 26.4 points to a record 5352.2 after hitting an intraday record high of 5406.7 points.
The All Ordinaries set a record close for the second day running, moving up 29.4 points to 5305.3 after reaching a fresh intraday high of 5352.1.
At the close of trade on the Sydney Futures Exchange the June share price index contract was up 19 points to 5352 on a volume of 16,809.
ABN Amro private client adviser Craig Walker said the budget, which included tax cuts and changes to superannuation, had provided a strong foundation for the market.
"Certainly the outcome of the budget last night has had some effect on a number of stocks, including AMP and AXA, which are connected directly to positive outcomes from changes on superannuation," he said.
"Tax cuts had a positive effect on the retail stocks with the feeling that people will have a bit more cash to spend."
AMP rose 25c to $9.79, AXA Asia Pacific 16c to $6.65 and Perpetual $2.98 to $73.98 on the back of proposed super reform.
The prospect of greater consumer spending pushed most retail stocks higher.
Coles Myer rose 6c to $10.93 and Harvey Norman 14c to $3.98 but Woolworths fell 1c to $18.92.
Stronger base metals underpinned an upward shift in the major resource stocks.
BHP Billiton rose 35c to $31.35 and Rio Tinto $1.20 to $85.75.
The spot price of gold also surged, breaking through the $US700 an ounce mark, rising $US24.80 to $US703.30 an ounce.
Gold miners rose in response. Newcrest Mining was up 65c to $24.05, Newmont 23c to $7.49 and Lihir Gold 24c to $3.60.
Aviators didn't do so well. Virgin Blue reported a first-half net profit of $68.2 million, down 8.4 per cent, sending its shares slipping 6c to $1.69. Qantas fell 3c to $3.38.
Fertiliser company Incitec Pivot soared $4.35, or 23 per cent, to $23.35 after explosives maker Orica sold its 56.5 per cent stake in the company.
Orica said the sale would add a one-off net gain of $399 million this financial year and its shares rose 8c to $25.75.
The big four banks were largely softer. Commonwealth Bank fell 2c to $46.26 and Westpac 2c to $24.75 but ANZ rose 16c to $28.45.
National Australia Bank fell 44c to $36.80. It is expected to deliver a first-half net profit of nearly $2 billion today.
Other financial stocks were stronger. Macquarie Bank rose 74c to $70.90 and St George 16c to $30.46.
The most traded stock was small explorer Jervois Mining - 183.4 million of its shares were traded, collectively worth $3.75 million. Jervois shares rose 0.1c to 1.9c.
Market turnover reached 1.89 billion shares worth a total of $5.42 billion - 679 stocks were up, 506 down and 309 unchanged.

Without miners, it's steady as she goes

The sharemarket finished marginally higher yesterday after a relatively steady day of trading, lacking the usual boost provided by the resource sector.
Softer metal prices pulled the big miners back after a flat lead from the US overnight.
The ASX 200 closed 1.8 points higher at 5325.8 while the All Ordinaries rose 2.4 points to 5275.9.
Shaw Stockbroking's Jamie Spiteri said the market was steady ahead of the federal budget. "Index-wise, [it is] probably one of the more steady days when you compare it to the recent volatility," he said.
BHP Billiton lost 39c to $31 while Rio Tinto slipped $1.14 to $84.55.
After oil prices fell overnight, Woodside Petroleum finished steady at $47.50. Santos gained 10c to $12.15 while Oil Search rose 8c to $4.53.
CBA fell 12c to $46.28, NAB was off 16c to $37.24, while Westpac picked up 16c to $24.77 and ANZ rose 9c to $28.29.
Toll Holdings said it had received strong support from investors for its $6 billion takeover bid for stevedore Patrick Corp after Macquarie Bank withdrew plans to make a counter takeover proposal.
Toll picked up 88c to $14.58 while Patrick pulled back 12c to $8.78 and Macquarie Bank weakened 84c to $70.16.
Uranium explorer U308 made a stunning debut, closing at 68c compared to its 20c issue price after opening at 70.5c and trading as high as 81.5c.
Shares in the Fiji-focused gold and copper explorer Geopacific Resources listed on the ASX on par to the issue price of 20c before falling back to close at 18.5c.
Meanwhile, Blue Chip Financial closed steady with its 74c issue price after listing at 80c.
Diversified explorer Echo Resources debuted on the ASX at 30c, up 5c on its issue price, before closing at 27c.
Centro Properties Group picked up 10c to $6.73 after it formed a $1 billion property fund following the $US524 million ($679.55 million) acquisition of seven US shopping centres from Westfield.
Westfield was up 34c to $17.45.
Incitec Pivot is acquiring ammonium phosphate fertilisers producer Southern Cross Fertilisers from BHP Billiton for $165 million. The news came as Orica announced it would sell its entire 70 per cent stake in Incitec, which was in a trading halt. Orica rose 59c to $25.67.
Retail stocks closed mixed with Woolworths off 5c to $18.93 while Coles Myer climbed 15c to $10.87 and David Jones added 12c to $2.84.
Telstra dipped 2c to $3.84 while Optus owner Singapore Telecom fell 2c to $2.25.
Hutchison Telecom, steady at 25c, will become the first mobile phone provider to move all its customers to the 3G network as it manoeuvres to keep ahead of other telcos.
Newcrest Mining tumbled 60c to $23.40, Newmont dipped 3c to $7.26 while Lihir Gold rose 1c to $3.36.

Bourse gets another lift from resources

The sharemarket put on more than $10 billion in value yesterday, spurred on by a bullish Wall Street and higher base metal and commodity prices.
Only two of the top 20 companies - Coles Myer and Wesfarmers - went backwards.
The ASX 200 index rose 68.6 points or 1.3 per cent to 5324 and the All Ordinaries index 64 points or 1.23 per cent to 5273.5.
Austock Broking senior client adviser Michael Heffernan said the materials sector, which includes the major miners, rose by more than 3 per cent.
"It's the resources which have been the dominating influence on the market today," Mr Heffernan said.
BHP Billiton rose 3.6 per cent or $1.09 to $31.39, Rio Tinto 3.55 per cent or $2.94 to $85.69 and Zinifex 6.4 per cent or 76c to a record $12.66.
National Australia Bank, which reports its interim profit result on Thursday, rose 83c to $37.40, ANZ 28c to $28.20 and Westpac 18c to $24.61.
Commonwealth Bank, up 30c to $46.40, will offer a diesel hedging product to small and medium sized transport companies looking for protection against spiralling fuel costs.
Investors were expecting retailers to do well from today's federal budget.
Tax cuts are likely to spur consumer spending.
Harvey Norman rose 13c to $3.80, David Jones 12c to $2.72 and Woolworths 12c to $18.98. Coles Myer eased 8c to $10.72.
Telstra rose 1c to $3.86 while Optus's parent company, SingTel, was steady at $2.27.
The Toll/Patrick war is on again with logistics group Toll starting legal proceedings against the takeover target for the role it played in soliciting a counter proposal from Macquarie Bank.
Toll wants the Victorian Supreme Court to make Patrick's managing director, Chris Corrigan, and chairman, Peter Scanlon, comply with obligations of a deed of agreement between the two companies.
Toll rose 60c to $13.70 while Patrick fell 8c to $8.90.
Qantas fell 3c to $3.42, Virgin Blue 3.5c to $1.775 and travel group Flight Centre 35c to $9.95.
Shares in drug company Acrux rose as much as 40 per cent following positive phase III trial results for Evamist, a spray for symptoms of menopause. The shares jumped as high as 93c before closing at 82c, up 15.5c or 23.31 per cent.
Warehouse Group fell 13c to $3.20. The budget retailer posted a 1.3 per cent increase in overall third-quarter sales to $NZ386 million ($322 million).
Telecom New Zealand rose 13c to $4.09.
Analysts say a poor third-quarter result for Telecom NZ's struggling Australian business, AAPT, and regulatory uncertainty have added further downside risks to the parent's share price.
Newcrest Mining rose 87c to $24 and Lihir Gold 6c to $3.35 but Newmont Mining bucked the trend, falling 16c to $7.29.
The top traded stock by volume was Imperial One, with 142.79 million shares traded for a total value of $4.24 million. The stock gained 1.1c to 3.4c.

Miners send market back up

The sharemarket finished the week strongly, with the big mining stocks once again leading the way, encouraged higher by booming metal prices.
The upward move in commodities added to a strong lead from Wall Street, where the main indices closed higher on lower oil prices and improved April retail sales.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index finished at 5255.4, its peak for the day, for a gain of 66.2 points — winning back more than three-quarters of the ground lost in Thursday's big sell-off.
The market's net move after a week of gyrations was a loss of 3.4 points.
"It has recovered a good part of what it lost yesterday (Thursday) and was probably buoyed by a stronger US market, which resulted from the lower oil price, and in addition the higher gold price and higher metal prices," said Intersuisse director of equities Andrew Sekely.
"Those, combined with a reaction to a naturally high sell-off, have resulted in the improvement that we have seen today."
Continuing strength in metal prices, in particular for copper, sent the miners higher, with BHP Billiton picking up 65¢ to $30.30 and rival Rio Tinto piling on $1.70 to $82.75.
The spot price of gold jumped a further $US15.30 an ounce in Sydney trading to close at $US680.40. The gold miners responded, with Newcrest skipping 50¢ higher to $23.13, Newmont moving up 15¢ to $7.45 and Lihir rising 13¢ to $3.29.
An overnight fall of $US2.34 a barrel in the spot crude oil price to $US69.94 didn't take the shine off energy stocks. Woodside picked up 32¢ to $47.37, Oil Search found 7¢ to $4.39 and Santos firmed 38¢ to $11.86.
Among the leading banks, Westpac found 6¢ to $24.43 after posting an improved first-half net profit of $1.47 billion. Commonwealth Bank rose 30¢ to $46.10 and ANZ moved 27¢ higher to $27.92 but National Australia Bank dipped 1¢ to $36.57.
Shares in Macquarie Bank picked up $1.09 to $70.60. Patrick rose 28¢ to $8.98 and Toll shed 67¢ to $13.10.
Health-care company Cochlear surged ahead, gathering $3.50 to $54 after it locked in a $270 million Cochlear implant contract in Taiwan and China.
Retailers were stronger, with Coles Myer strengthening 25¢ to $10.80, David Jones up 1¢ at $2.60 and Woolworths shifting 31¢ higher to $18.86.
Media stocks gained ground. PBL put on 26¢ to $18.58 and Fairfax firmed 3¢ to $3.89 while News Corp's non-voting shares gained 57¢ to $23.04 and the voting scrip rose 56¢ to $24.53.
Telstra climbed 7¢ to $3.85.
The dollar ended a quarter of a US cent higher, despite shedding some of its recent gains after an update from the Reserve Bank dashed hopes of a quick follow-up to this week's interest rate rise.
At 5pm, it was at US76.84¢, up from US76.59¢ on Thursday and well above last week's close of US75.46¢.

Miners and banks slump as world plays follow the leader

The sharemarket dropped sharply yesterday in the wake of weaker global equity markets, lower prices for base metals and oil, and higher interest rates.
Big miners such as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto fell heavily, as did the major banks.
ABN Amro Morgans senior client adviser Roger Chandler said the market was due for a correction after a strong run upwards.
"It's also the fact that the interest rate rise [on Wednesday] has taken a considerable amount off the banks," Mr Chandler said.
"When banks and resources both go down, the market goes down," he said.
The ASX 200 fell 84.3 points to 5189.2 and the All Ordinaries fell 78.2 to 5146.7.
Westpac was down 65c at $24.37 despite a 16.5 per cent jump in half-year net profit to $1.47 billion.
Investors were disappointed with Westpac's performance in home and business lending and concerned about further softening across the industry.
NAB lost 66c to $36.58, ANZ fell 53c to $27.65 and CBA slid 75c to $45.80.
BHP slumped $1.10 to $29.65 and Rio Tinto dived $2.24 to $81.05 as it said economic growth in China would still drive strong commodity prices. Alumina fell 26c to $7.23.
Oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum dropped $1.56 to $47.05. Santos shed 38c to $11.48 as it said it would spend $100 million on its Timor Bonaparte program.
Minerals explorer Straits Resources rose 7c to $4.41 after it said its 2006 earnings would be significantly above 2005's, due to strength in global markets.
Property manager GPT Group rose 4c to $4.22 after it said would deliver a distribution of 27.5c per security in 2006.
Lend Lease lifted 5c to $13.85 after it said it had formed a $124 million joint-venture with Bank of Scotland, giving it more opportunities in the UK's public sector infrastructure market.
Biodiesel producer Mission Biofuels closed its first day of trading at an impressive 39 per cent premium to its $1 issue price, ahead of beginning construction of a biodiesel production plant in Malaysia.
The stock opened at $1.29 and closed at $1.385.
Telstra eased 6c to $3.78 and was the top traded stock by volume, with 45.52 million shares worth $172.08 million changing hands.
Optus owner Singapore Telecom rose 3c to $2.29.
Optus said it would invest more than $1 billion in the new financial year, after posting an 8.5 per cent decline in annual net profit to $593 million.
Goldminer Newmont fell 35c to $7.30, Newcrest 52c to $22.63 and Lihir 20c to $3.16.

Rate rise rocks mood of sharemarket traders

The sharemarket suffered its biggest fall in more than three months yesterday as the double whammy of an increase in interest rates and weak base metal prices weighed on stocks across most sectors.
The Australian dollar also closed just below a seven-month high against the greenback at US76.59c, causing more angst for export-orientated manufacturers, which are already feeling the impact of higher petrol prices.
Brokers say the Reserve Bank's decision to raise interest rates by a quarter of a point was the catalyst for the minor correction.
Investors will again be on tenterhooks when the central bank issues its quarterly statement on monetary policy today, providing a clearer picture of the likelihood of further interest rate rises this year.
The ASX 200 index slumped 1.6 per cent, or 84.3 points, to 5189.2 - 2.6 per cent less than its record on April 26. The All Ordinaries index fell 78.2 points, or 1.5 per cent, to 5146.7.
The banks suffered a "smack in the chops" despite Westpac posting a 16 per cent rise in half-year profits.
Brokers said the earnings figures this week from Westpac and St George Bank, although in line with expectations, were not enough to justify a new bout of buying in the financial sector.
Adding to the woes yesterday, a fall overnight in base metal prices of between 1 and 2 per cent caused investors to sell resource stocks.
BHP Billiton was one of the worst hit of the big resource groups, falling more than 3.5 per cent, or $1.10, to $29.65. Rio Tinto slumped $2.24 to $81.05.
ABN Amro's head of Sydney sales trading, Justin Gallagher, said the banks bore the brunt of the profit-taking, although he was surprised at the magnitude of the slide in the market. "The theme of inflation is well and truly alive again, and it's starting to spook markets," he said.
Investors were concerned about an environment of rising interest rates, and the market would struggle to gain if the Reserve Bank governor, Ian Macfarlane, indicates he is "really concerned" about inflation in the statement today.
National Australia Bank's senior market economist, David de Garis, said the high Australian dollar would "make life more difficult" for companies dependent on exports.
"What the Australian dollar is really reacting to is quite a marked change in interest rate expectations," he said.
Lihir Gold was one of the biggest losers, falling almost 6 per cent, or 20c, to $3.16. Newcrest dropped 52c to $22.63.
Coca-Cola Amatil also continued to suffer from a disappointing profit forecast this week, falling 28c to $6.77 yesterday. The stock has lost more than 7 per cent over the past two days.
Westpac fell 65c, or 2.6 per cent, to $24.37. Among its competitors, Commonwealth Bank fell 75c to $45.80, ANZ 53c to $27.65, NAB 66c to $36.58 and St George 30c to $29.90.
Nomura Australia's market strategist, Eric Betts, said the market was entering a period of consolidation after gaining more than 9 per cent since the start of the year. "[But] I don't think the bull market is dead - far from it, in my opinion," he said.

Resource shares offset rate rise

The Australian sharemarket ended marginally higher yesterday, with falls in interest-rate sensitive stocks offset by a run-up in the resources sector.
The market initially fell after the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted the official cash rate for the first time in more than a year, by a quarter of a percentage point, to 5.75 per cent.
But it clawed back lost ground to end slightly higher.
At the close the ASX 200 was just 0.4 of a point higher at 5273.5 while the All Ordinaries was up 2.5 points at 5224.9.
Nomura Australia equity markets strategist Eric Betts said the interest rate decision would dampen consumer spending.
"We have seen some of the discretionary retailers down," he said.
David Jones lost 3c to $2.62, Coles Myer slipped 12c to $10.71 and Woolworths fell 30c to $18.40.
Banks were also lower as brokers worried the hike would hurt bank lending books.
"It's good for margins but bad for volumes going forward," Mr Betts said.
"It will slow credit growth."
National Australia Bank shed 13c to $37.24, Commonwealth Bank lost 8c to $46.55 and Westpac , which releases its first-half result today, fell 13c to $25.02. ANZ bucked the trend, gaining 6c to $28.18.
Financial services company AMP added 5c to $9.12 and investment bank Macquarie Bank gained 29c to $70.00.
Resource stocks gained on still buoyant commodities markets, particularly metals and oil prices.
The spot price of gold in Sydney closed at $US673.80 per ounce, $US17.85 higher than yesterday's close.
BHP Billiton lifted by 37c to $30.75, Rio Tinto gained $1.74 to $83.29 and energy company Woodside strengthened 21c to $48.61.
Lihir Gold powered ahead 13c or 4 per cent to $3.36, with Newcrest Mining jumping 54c to $23.15 but Newmont edging back 2c to $7.65.
Meanwhile, shares in Telecom Corp of New Zealand suffered in late trading, dropping 33c or nearly 7 per cent to $4.43, after the New Zealand Government outlined plans to regulate the telco in a major shake-up of the country's telecommunications sector.
Telstra, which is facing its own regulatory battles, closed 8c or 2 per cent lower at $3.84.
In the media sector, News Corp fell 9c to $23.99 and its non-voting shares were down 9c to $22.52, as Seven Network dipped 3c to $9.27.
Shares in John Fairfax, which announced a plan to buy The Border Mail publishing assets for $155 million after the market closed, were unchanged at $3.89.
Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd gained 20c to $18.53.
The top traded stock was Empire Oil and Gas with 51.93 million shares traded for a total value of $417,000. The stock gained 0.2c to 0.9c.
National market turnover was 1.43 billion shares worth $4.14 billion, with 568 stocks rising, 581 falling and 325 unchanged.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange the June share price index futures contract had lifted three points to 5274 on a volume of 13,471 contracts at the end of day trading.

Sellers return from a bad meal

The stockmarket closed weaker with concerns about a possible interest rate rise helping spark an after-lunch sell-off.
Macquarie Equities private client adviser Helen Spencer said there had been profit taking across the board.
"We have seen a lot of money coming out of the market this afternoon and there is probably a little bit of anxiety ahead of what the Reserve Bank might say."
The ASX 200 fell 37.3 points to 5273.1 while the All Ordinaries was down 32.8 to 5222.4.
St George Bank has overcome the lagging economy in its home state of NSW to lift its net profit by 9.1 per cent to $502 million in the first half. However, the bank's shares fell 59c to $30.37.
National Australia Bank fell 31c to $37.37, Westpac 11c to $25.15, the Commonwealth 47c to $46.63 and ANZ 9c to $28.12.
The big miners made a strong start but lost momentum, with BHP Billiton sliding 9c to $30.38 and Rio Tinto steady at $81.55.
A rise in the oil price overnight helped oil and gas stocks defy the market gloom, with Santos up 7c to $11.93 and Woodside climbing 50c to $48.40. Oil Search fell 7c to $4.35.
Amadeus Energy rose 15c to $1.27 after it announced 100 feet of total net pay from an exploration well at Halletsville in Texas.
Aristocrat Leisure slumped $1.03 to $14 after the poker machine maker said it expected a drop in first-half profit in Japan, although that would be offset by strong growth in the company's other markets.
Westfield Group fell 24c to $16.86 despite the shopping centre owner saying it was confident it could meet its 106.5c distribution forecast for the financial year.
Austar United Communications rose 1.5c to $1.265 after the regional pay TV provider reported a 29 per cent rise in first quarter profit and signed an agreement with ThoroughVisioN to show live horse racing.
IT supplier IBA Health rose 13.5c to $1.27, the best it's been since the tech crash, closing up 1.5c at $1.15 after it upgraded its profit guidance.
Telstra dipped 5c to $3.92 and was the top traded stock of the day by volume, with 41.6 million shares worth $164.19 million changing hands.
John Fairfax fell 6c to $3.89, PBL was down 22c to $18.33 and WA News dropped 18c to $8.24.
Coles Myer rose 11c to $10.83 while Woolworths fell 15c to $18.70.
Gold stocks were sold off after their strong performance on Monday, with Newcrest Mining down 89c to $22.61, Lihir Gold 9c weaker at $3.23 and Bendigo 3c worse at $2.36.

Gold's all aglimmer and miners likewise

GOLD stocks led the stockmarket higher yesterday as the price of the yellow metal climbed to a new 25-year peak.
The ASX 200 rose 51.6 points to 5310.4 while the All Ordinaries rose 48.2 to 5255.2.
Aequs Securities institutional dealer Ric Klusman said the big miners had made back the ground they lost during last Friday's sell-off.
"It's been a strong, strong day," he said. "The gold price in Asia is up and everybody has just been piling into the gold stocks."
The spot price of gold was $US660.30 an ounce, a jump of $US23 from Friday's local close, after hitting a 25-year high of $US661.10. The previous 25-year high was $US655.30, set on Friday in New York.
Newcrest shot up 70c to $23.50, Lihir Gold rose 15c to $3.32, Newmont climbed 16c to $7.75 and AngloGold Ashanti rose 28c to $14.34. Bendigo was up 5c at $2.39 and even Fijian-PNG miner Emperor joined the trend, rising 1c to 60c. Oxiana jumped 23c to $3.64.
BHP Billiton leapt $1.17 to $30.47 and Rio Tinto shot up $2.90 to $81.55.
Oil and gas stocks also made gains on the rise in the oil price, with Woodside Petroleum climbing $1.10 to $47.90, Santos up 4c to $11.86 and Oil Search up 12c at $4.42.
Sherlock Bay Nickel topped the trading by volume, with 37.9 million shares going through, setting a high for the past year of 17.5c. It closed at 16.5c.
Among the banks, ANZ advanced 26c to $28.21, NAB gained 7c to $37.68, Westpac rose 16c to $25.26 and the Commonwealth was up 10c to $47.10.
But Macquarie Bank tumbled 93c to $70.47 and Babcock & Brown fell 10c to $18.20.
Multiplex was up 2c at $3.08 after the construction group said it expected substantial completion of contractors' works at London's Wembley Stadium by the end of June.
Fertiliser producer Incitec Pivot dipped 14c to $19.56, despite saying it expected current earnings momentum to continue into the second half of the year.
In retail, Woolworths climbed 19c to $18.85 and Coles Myer 1c to $10.72.
Telstra rose 3c to $3.97.