Stocks flat as retail, energy weigh

The local market has opened little changed, despite gains in materials and the big banks.

The Australian sharemarket has inched down in opening deals, weighed by weakness in retail and energy stocks that outweighed gains in materials and the big banks.

At the 10.15am (AEST) official market open, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index edged down 4.5 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 5,314.4, while the broader All Ordinaries index lost 5.1 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 5,379.8.

The modest open came after one of the quieter trading days for the year on Wall Street as a brief data lull offered a breather for investors.

“The talk on the trading floors this morning centres on the limited moves in markets, although some will welcome this, notably the Fed who have had a hand in creating these conditions,” IG chief market strategist Chris Weston said.

“In fact, the range in the Dow equalled the lowest this year, with poor volume.”

Mr Weston tipped a quiet start to the trading day could turn if volatility on commodity markets returns through the session.

In the meantime the major miners are trading higher, with investors selling yesterday on a decline in iron ore futures and buying today despite the futures moves leading to a significant fall on markets overnight.

BHP Billiton gained 0.82 per cent to $18.52, Rio Tinto climbed 0.41 per cent to $44.18 and Fortescue advanced 0.52 per cent to $2.93.

The gains came after iron ore tumbled over 5 per cent to a 10-week low of $US52.70 a tonne in offshore trade.

It was a bleaker story in the energy space as a one-week low in oil prices corresponded with a slide in the fortunes of the key local players.

Santos gave back 0.24 per cent to $4.24, while Woodside inched down 0.04 per cent to $26.78.

Oil Search fell 0.53 per cent to $6.58 after InterOil founder Phil Mulacek hit out at the planned tie-up of the two companies.

In banking, ANZ edged up 0.04 per cent to $24.96, CBA rose 0.22 per cent to $78.13, NAB climbed 0.11 per cent to $27.17 and Westpac added 0.07 per cent to $29.92.

In retail, Wesfarmers weakened 0.75 per cent to $42.40 after Bank of America Merrill Lynch warned on the risk of a profit fall, while rival Woolworths eased 0.5 per cent to $22.07.

Among blue chips, Telstra lost 0.09 per cent to $5.66, while Qantas slid 1.2 per cent to $3.16 as sentiment in the travel sector took a dive.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar edged down to US72.1c in early trade.