Yahoo Finance ASX200 closes higher on virus hopes
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 (^AXJO) has finished Tuesday higher, up 1.87 per cent to 5,488.10 points at the close.
It came after a rough start that saw the index dip briefly into the red before rising from around 10:30am.
The broader All Ordinaries index (^AORD) also finished higher, up 1.90 per cent to 5,542.50 points.
The performance is buoyed by hopes the virus will be over sooner rather than later, amid early signs Australia is flattening the curve.
Midday update
The ASX200 lifted 0.88 per cent to 5,434.60 points in midday trade, following a wobbly start to the shortened trading this morning.
The All Ordinaries was also up 0.94 per cent to 5,490.50 points.
Westpac and Virgin were the two big names in the headlines throughout the day with Virgin entering a trading halt and Westpac bracing for a $1.03 billion money laundering hit.
The bank’s child exploitation and money laundering scandal could punch its first-half cash profit $1.03 billion lower as it’s forced to set aside a huge sum for the potential legal penalty.
Virgin Australia enters trading halt
Virgin Australia has begun a trading halt on Tuesday morning as it awaits an upcoming announcement.
In a statement to the ASX, the beleaguered airline said it will remain in trading halt until Thursday morning, or when the announcement is made.
Company secretary Sharyn Page said the airline needs the halt as it “continues to consider the issues brought about by the Covid-19 crisis including discussions with respect to financial assistance and restructuring alternatives”.
The airline has asked for a $1.4 billion bailout from the federal government as it, and Qantas, have been forced to stand down tens of thousands of workers amid severe international and domestic travel restrictions.
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack says the government is working with the two airlines to find ways to subsidise flights between major cities.
Morning movements
The ASX200 also had a turbulent start to the trading day on Tuesday.
It was down 0.46 per cent to 5,362.70 points at 10:30am AEDT while the All Ordinaries also dipped 0.44 per cent lower to 5,415.40 points.
It came after a tough night on Wall Street overnight, which saw US stocks dip. But Australian traders also have a mixed bag of news: early signs that the country is flattening the curve, while welcome and hopeful, come amid warnings from Treasury that local unemployment could hit 10 per cent in the June quarter.
That percentage of unemployment would leave 1.4 million Australians out of work.
What happened overnight?
The Dow and S&P 500 have fallen following last week's gains as America’s biggest companies lurch towards an earnings season like no other.
Yahoo Finance US editor-in-chief described the upcoming earnings season as one that will “plain old suck”, with some large companies set to have no earnings to speak of.
That’s compounded by the inability of companies and analysts to predict future earnings and dividend cuts. The result? More rough weeks ahead.
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