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Aussie stockmarket opens stronger as US rebounds

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The Australian share market opened strongly on Friday, following rebounds overnight in Europe and on Wall Street, ahead of what is tipped to be a quiet day of trading.

At 1015 AEST, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 52.2 points, or 1.26 per cent, at 4,193, while the broader All Ordinaries index was up 54.1 points, or 1.29 per cent, at 4,257.6.

On the ASX 24, the September share price index futures contract was up 60 points at 4,153 with 22,440 contracts traded.

Bell Potter senior adviser Stuart Smith said the market was following strong leads from Wall Street.

US stocks made another dramatic comeback overnight as markets around the world strengthened against a background of continuing volatility. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 3.94 per cent, while the broader S&P 500 lifted 4.63 per cent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 4.69 per cent.

“The Dow has had extraordinary moves and we can expect it to have a rest tonight approaching the weekend,” Mr Smith said.

“I think we’ll (locally) probably just coast for the day and finish where we finished last night.”

In local trade, the banks opened higher, with NAB up 22 cents, or one per cent, at $23.12, Westpac rising 28 cents, or 1.4 per cent, to $20.73, Commonwealth Bank lifting 64 cents, or 1.3 per cent, to $49.22, while ANZ was 17 cents higher at $20.26.

Miners also started the day strongly. BHP Billiton opened 45 cents higher, by 1.2 per cent, at $38.38, while Rio Tinto was up $1.10, or 1.6 per cent, at $71.51.

Shopping centre developer and operator Westfield Group said on Friday it would enter its second new market in two days, with a joint venture in the northern Italian city of Milan, following a similar announcement on Wednesday regarding Brazil.

At 1025 AEST, Westfield securities were eight cents higher at $7.64.

The price of gold in Sydney was $US1,749.80 per fine ounce, down $US31.88 from Thursday’s local close at $US1,781.68.

Gold miner Newcrest Mining was up three cents at $40.77.

National turnover at 1015 AEST was 336.1 million shares worth $598.8 million, with 625 stocks up, 103 down and 155 were steady.

News Corp was the strongest performing stock in opening trade. At 1026 AEST, its shares were up $1.06, or 7.2 per cent, at $15.81, while News’s non-voting stock was up $1.16 at $15.41.