• ASX closes lower to end the financial year
  • Energy and Miners were the main laggards
  • CBA rises its fixed rate home loans

 

Blue chip stocks finished in the red today on the last day of the financial year. Historically, investors sell off their loss making positions before the year end to offset any capital gains tax.

The ATO has issued a stern warning on this practice, as well as saying it would be cracking down on car-related expenses this tax time.

“We do expect car and travel expenses to go down quite significantly because if you’ve been working from home, you can’t be at two places at once,” ATO Commissioner Tim Loh warned.

On the ASX, Energy and Miners dragged the bourse down, falling by more than 1%. Energy fell on the back of oil prices, which dipped by 2% overnight, and iron ore prices also traded weaker by around 2%.

Utilities stocks were sold off as the Australian Market Operator (AEMO) released its development plan for the National Electricity Market (NEM) over the next 30 years.

In its latest version, the AEMO says the plan is for a “true transformation” of the NEM from fossil fuels to firmed renewables, emphasising the need for investment in generation, storage, transmission, and system services that exceed all previous efforts

Meanwhile, Financial stocks underperformed on Thursday with all Big Four banks falling more than 1%. This came as CBA lifted its fixed home mortgages by 1.4% today, according to RateCity.

The market is nervous that higher mortgage rates may make it more difficult for people to get home loans.

A bit of good news out of China today though, where the country’s non-manufacturing PMI has rebounded to 54.7 versus 47.8 last month. The PMI is a traditional measure used to gauge the direction of economic trends as viewed by business decision makers.

 

BIG CAP WINNERS

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Pointsbet (ASX:PBH) was the best large cap performer, up by 13% today on no specific news.

 

BIG CAP LOSERS

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AGL Energy (ASX:AGL) was little changed, down by 0.30%, after reporting that it has become aware that Brookfield (or its subsidiaries) are acquiring more of AGL shares in the open market. In May, Brookfield and Mike Cannon-Brookes’ Grok Ventures unsuccessfully tried to acquire AGL in a hostile bid.