The Australian market climbed at the open then traded in a narrow range for the remainder of the day. The All Ordinaries finished Monday trading 76 points stronger.

Index                                      Close  Chg     %Chg
All Ordinaries                      4,733   +76.4   +1.6
ASX 200                                 4,718   +82.4   +1.8
ASX Small Ords                    2,473   +31.0   +1.3
Industrials                            3,939   +64.4   +1.7
Fin.-x-Prop Trusts                5,502   +109.0  +2.0
Materials                              12,269  +302.8  +2.5
Cons. Staple                          7,658   +144.6  +1.9
Telecom Serv.                       1,035   -48.0   -4.4
10y Bond Yield                     5.65    +0.02   +0.4

The S&P/ASX 200 closed 82 points up with all sectors except Telcos finishing in the black. Material and Energy led the way, with heavyweights BHP Billiton (+$1.16) and Rio Tinto (+$1.51) increasing. Newcrest Mining (+$1.46) had a strong day, as did Oz Minerals (+$0.08). Gunns (-$0.20) suffered after releasing its 1H10 results. Woodside Petroleum (+$0.99) and Origin Energy (+$0.55) helped boost the Energy sector (+$0.55). The banks, Commonwealth Bank (+$1.32), Westpac (+$0.66), ANZ (+0.58) and National Australia Bank (+$0.08) contributed to the market’s gain. Telstra (-$0.15) and Telecom New Zealand (-$0.06) finished lower as both traded ex-dividend.

Companies reporting financial results on Monday included Fairfax Media (+$0.02), Platinum Asset Management (+$0.04), Caltex (+$0.10), UGL (+$0.57), Challenger Financial Services (+$0.21), ING Office (+$0.02), AWE (-$0.03), Seven Network, (+$0.0), Transfield Services Infrastructure (+$0.01) and Gunns. Fairfax Media reported a 1H10 NPAT of $143.5M, compared to a loss of $375.6M (inclusive of $522.9M of impairments and significant items) in 1H09. On a like-for-like basis revenue declined 9.2% on pcp and EBITDA was down 10.8%. The company generated $225.8M of operating cash flow and reduced debt by $170.2M. An interim dividend of 1.1cps (2.0cps in 1H09) unfranked was declared. A new agreement with APN News and Media to combine the Fairfax classified brands with those of APN was revealed.