The market is up 29. Our futures were down 3 this morning as the Dow finished up 12 on below-average volume. The Dow was up 43 at best and down 16 at worst on a weaker than expected GDP reading and further company earnings. US markets closed flat.

US YonY GDP was 2.5% in the March quarter, which missed the forecasts for 3.0%.

The final reading of consumer sentiment for April was 76.4, beating the previous result of 72.3 and forecast of 73.2.

According to Reuters, 271 companies in the S&P 500 have reported 1Q earnings and 69% have beaten analyst expectations, above the 63% average since 1994.

Amazon and Starbucks finished down 7.2% and 0.08% on their quarterly earnings numbers.

US 10-year bond yield was down 4bpts to 1.665%. Over the week the yield was down 4bpts. The VIX (Volatility Index) was down 0.07%.

Best sectors — consumer staples, utilities, industrials. Worst sectors — consumer discretionary, materials.

European markets down — UK FTSE down 0.25%, German DAX down 0.23%, France down 0.79%, Spain down 0.81%, Italy down 0.51%. The FTSEurofirst 300 index was down 0.4% but still added 3.8% over the week — the strongest gain in five months.

Metals down — copper down 2.11%, nickel down 1.38%, zinc down 2.15%, aluminium down 3.50%. Spot iron ore was down 50c on Friday to $134.10. Over the week iron was down $3.90.

  • Tabcorp Holdings (TAH) — Has reported a 2.6% in Q3 increase in revenue to $480.3 million. All four businesses — wagering, media and international, gaming services and Keno — continued to yield positive revenue results. However wagering which generates the bulk of the company’s earnings was down 4.7% at $368.6 million. The decline was attributable to new arrangements in Victoria. TAH is up 1.8% to 340c.
  • BHP Billiton (BHP) — Has signed an agreement to sell their Pinto Valley operation to Capstone Mining Corp for $US650 million. BHP is down 0.34% to 3247c.
  • Kingsgate Consolidated (KCN) — Quarterly Activities report says they are reviewing spending plans following a sharp fall in gold. They expect gold output in the fiscal year through June at the bottom end of its previous guidance of between 200,000 and 220,000 ounces. Third-quarter output of 47,509 ounces was slightly higher than 46,150 in the previous three months. KCN is down 13.06% to 233c.
  • Retailers — Are hoping for a cold winter this year so that they can avoid an increase in inventories after last year’s above-average temperatures caused heavy write-offs. Retailers usually start moving trans-seasonal stocks into stores during February when temperatures fall. This has been pushed back to March-April because temperatures are still hovering in the mid-20s. Stocks likely to be affected include MYR, DJS, KMD, PMV and SFG.