The Australian market fell at the open, then after an early bounce, trended downwards, before bouncing again mid-afternoon. The All Ordinaries finished Tuesday only 2 points down.

The S&P/ASX 200 closed at trivial 1 point up with all sectors finishing either marginally up or marginally down for the day. BHP Billiton (-$0.05) was offset by Rio Tinto (+$0.24). Commonwealth Bank (+$0.42), Westpac (+$0.24), ANZ (+$0.19) finished slightly up, while National Australia Bank (+$0.32) closed slightly down. In percentage terms, significant movers included i-Soft (-$0.04), Gunns (-$0.04) and Charter Hall (+$0.04).

Companies reporting FY09 financial results on Tuesday included Oil Search (+$0.11), GPT Group (+$0.01), and APN News & Media (-$0.07). Companies reporting 1H10 results included Amcor (+$0.07), Sonic Healthcare (-$0.30), Aristocrat Leisure (-$0.10), Cabcharge (-$0.09); Consolidated Media (-$0.01); Southern Cross Media (-$0.02); Boom Logistics (-$0.01), and NRW Holdings (-$0.08). Oil Search reported NPAT of US$133.7M, down on US$313.4M in FY08. Adjusted NPAT was $99.6M, down 59% on pcp. The decline was driven by a 35% fall in the average realised oil price combined with 7% lower oil sales. GPT announced FY09 adjusted NPAT of $375.8M, up 3% on guidance from May 2009. GPT’s statutory result was a loss of $1,070.6M, which included property valuation movements. Gearing was 23.5%, a considerable buffer to its covenant level of 40%. NTA reduced to $0.69 per share as a result of the dilutive $1.7B capital raising. GPT is targeting FY10 distribution in excess of 3cps and aims to achieve a 1-for-5 consolidation of shares on issue.