Investors attention was dragged offshore on Friday as growing unease in global financial markets lifted following further political turmoil in Washington and after terrorists struck a crowded Barcelona street.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index finished the week up 0.9 per cent higher, while sliding 0.6 per cent on Friday to 5747.1 points. The broader All Ordinaries Index also finished the week 0.9 per cent higher, while slipping 0.5 per cent to 5798.5 points.
A total of 73 companies have so far reported this earnings season and according to David Cassidy, equity strategist at UBS, "underwhelming guidance" is the standout trend.
"However, we don't necessarily see this as a black mark for the domestic economy as some of the cautious guidance relates to quite globally focussed companies and some of the guidance disappointment relates to the cost of 'investing for growth'," explained Mr Cassidy.
"While we are still only roughly at the half-way mark, we believe reporting season is confirming a corporate backdrop of moderate earnings growth and a moderate growth outlook; albeit seemingly even more moderate than the consensus was expecting."
For the week, the telecommunications sector was easily the worst performing, while consumer discretionary and consumer staples were the best.
Telstra managed to find only marginal buying support on Friday after a cataclysmic sell-off on Thursday following it's announcement it was cutting its dividend. The stock plunged more than 10 per cent on the news but managed to claw back 0.8 per cent on Friday.
Primary Health Care slumped 2.8 per cent on Friday after posting a full-year loss of $517 million and a 5 per cent drop in underlying profit to $92.1 million.
Cochlear was the best performing company in the ASX 200 this week, closing 2.9 per cent higher on Friday to take the week's gains to 12 per cent after the company released bumper results on Thursday. Another reporting company, Domino's Pizza, was the worst performer over the five sessions, plunging 13 per cent.
Over the week, Commonwealth Bank of Australia - still plagued by Austrac investigations - closed the week down 1.8 per cent, while ANZ was up 2.6 per cent, Westpac lifted 1.9 per cent and National Australia Bank was up 2.3 per cent.
Stock Watch: Kogan
Shares in online dealer Kogan rocketed 8.6 per cent higher to $2.61 on Friday after the company announced it's rapid expansion of its product range helped drive its annual profit sharply higher. Kogan, which sells consumer electronics, general merchandise, food and travel deals, booked a net profit of $3.7 million for the year to June 30 which is more than quadruple what it made a year ago. The group, which listed on the share market about a year ago with the goal of using proceeds to expand its product range, enjoyed a 37.1 per cent jump in revenue to $289.5 million. Revenue was up 20 per cent on the prospectus forecast and its $13.2 million in underlying pro forma earnings (EBITDA), adjusted for one-off costs linked to the initial public offering, was more than triple the prior year's result.
Washington turbulence
US stocks slumped on speculation that Trump's policy agenda was increasingly in jeopardy after he disbanded two advisory councils staffed by CEOs and slammed Republican members of Congress who were critical of his remarks on race. The S&P 500 plunged 1.5 per cent to 2430, the biggest decline since May. The prospect of former Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn resigning from his role as head of the national economic council added to the selling until reports that he'd opted to stay momentarily buoyed the market.
Oil
Oil prices dipped on Friday as part of a broad-based selloff across markets, despite signs that crude markets are gradually tightening. Brent crude was fetching $US50.96 a barrel on Friday afternoon. "EIA data showed that stockpiles fell by 8.95 million barrels to 466.5 million barrels last week. This was the biggest weekly fall since September," ANZ bank said. Going forward, much will depend on output levels from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries which, together with non-OPEC producers like Russia, has pledged to restrict output by 1.8 million barrels per day between January this year and March 2018 to tighten the market and prop up prices.
Base metals
Zinc continued to roar higher on Friday, reaching a new 10-year high. The metal is now up by 21.5 per cent so far this year after also performing strongly in 2016. Analysts say the earlier rise was due to limited supply but now rising demand is starting to have an affect on price as well. Copper slid lower along with most other base metals at the end of the week, retreating from 3-year high and paring its sixth weekly advance. Global sentiment and the broader equities decline amid threat of US policy paralysis. Zinc resumed its rally as stockpiles numbers slumped.
Chinese home prices
Growth in new home prices slowed in China in July with Beijing prices down for a second straight month, reinforcing expectations of further slowing later this year. Government restrictions to keep prices in check weighed on larger cities, with July showing the slowest growth since August 2016. Smaller centres pulled back but remained robust. New home prices growth in tier 3 cities fall to 0.6 per cent from 0.9 per cent in June, the National Bureau of Statistics said in the data release.
