Shares up as banks outmuscle miners

Shares ended higher, as positive trading among the big four banks outweighed a lower resources sector yesterday.
The ASX200 index closed 43.9 points higher at 5469.7 and the All Ordinaries was up 40.1 to 5455.5.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the December share price index contract was 47 points higher at 5466 on a volume of 11,433 contracts.
"The momentum has pretty much been out of the financial sector," CMC Markets chief analyst David Land said. "The big four banks are accounting for the positive weight we're seeing on the index."
Westpac rose 24c to $23.89, National Australia Bank 18c to $38.78, the Commonwealth 66c to $47.56 and ANZ 31c to $27.91.
Mr Land said the session had been a fairly negative one for the resources sector.
"Futures prices in gold and oil were both off in overseas trade in the lead-up to the [Australian market] opening," Mr Land said.
The world's largest miner, BHP Billiton, dipped 1c to $25.95 and rival Rio Tinto 46c to $75.55.
Energy companies did not fare much better. Woodside Petroleum shed 24c to $37.75. Santos, meanwhile, was steady at $9.82, after announcing plans to sell its United States assets to concentrate its activities on Australia, Asia and the Middle East. Oil Search was up 4c at $3.22.
The spot price of gold in Sydney dropped $US6.80 to $US625.95 per fine ounce.
The share price of the goldminers fell too. Lihir Gold shed 10c to $3.03, Newcrest Mining dropped 46c to $25.00, Newmont lost 6c to $5.92 and Ballarat was off 1c at 27c.
Mergers and acquisitions enthusiasts were deflated after trans-Tasman brewer Lion Nathan withdrew its bid for New Zealand-based Independent Liquor and Sigma Pharmaceuticals terminated efforts to buy drugs distributor and pharmacy retailer Australian Pharmaceutical Industries.
Lion Nathan ended 17c lower at $7.93 and Sigma 7c at $2.78. API dipped 8c to $2.25.
Retailers also posted gains. Woolworths climbed 24c to $22.19, Coles 12c to $ 13.47 and David Jones 2c to $3.82.
Among media interests, PBL rose 34c to $21.44, News Corp 21c to $28.80 (with its non-voting stock edging up 20c to $27.45) and Fairfax 4c to $4.92.
The most traded stock of the day was Metals Australia, with a preliminary 120.11 million shares worth $9.51 million changing hands.