Erratic Aust, market

Press, 29 March 1982, Page 23

Erratic Aust, market

?JZPA Sydney The . Australian sharemarket was erratic last week, influenced by varying developments overseas and encouraging oil signs at home. At the close of the week the all-ordinaries was up 6.1 points to 478.3. The week began on a depressing note as power restrictions in New South Wales left brokers on the trading floor in semi-dark-ness. Local situation stocks provided the only interest on Monday ahead of the start of business in New York and .London. Oil issues were weak at the start of the week despite the failure of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries to raise crude oil prices and news on Monday of a 2500-barrels-a-day oil flow from the Merrimelia No. 8 exploration well in the Cooper jßasin, South Australia. £ However, on Wednesday a 640-barrels-a-day flow of oil from the Jackson South No. 1

well in the Queensland region of the Cooper Basin, representing a new oil field, was reported. Claremont Petroleum, with a 10 per cent stake in Jackson South, did particularly well, rising 13c cents on the week with more than five per cent of its fully-paid shares changing hands in two days. On Wednesday the market posted its strongest rise of the year, with the all-ordin-aries index moving up eight points after a rally on Wall Street. Institutional buyers, long absent from proceedings, were partly responsible for the bidding. However on Thursday the confidence of the previous day evaporated and prices were steady with golds performing well after the metal made a surge in New York above $U5330.00 an ounce. The unenthusiastic attitude towards share issues was underlined on Friday when a one-for-one rights issue by Hartogen Energy to raise about sAust4oM saw its stock price cut 55c to 305 c.