AUSTRALIA Tax reprieve for sold companies

Press, 22 December 1986, Page 37

AUSTRALIA Tax reprieve for sold companies

NZPA Sydney Heavy support for gold and mining stocks and moderate demand for blue-chip industrial issues pushed Australian sharemarkets to a series of record highs last week. The Federal Government’s decision to maintain the gold industry’s tax-free status was greeted by active demand for key gold and related mining stocks, despite a stronger currency which | decreased the price of | bullion in Australian I dollars. But the stronger I dollar led to cuts in domestic interest rates which lifted demand across the boards, particularly for banking stocks, while take-over activity among media stocks dominated activity on the industrial boards. The all-ordinaries index finished the week 19.1 points up at a. record 1456.8 — its fifty-second record for the year — and the all-industrials marker rose 14.1 points to a record 2318.7. The all-resources index jumped 23.2 points to

802.9 after a huge 123.5 point advance in the gold index to a record 1727.9. Turnovers were heavy as fund managers and equity trusts squared positions ahead of the New Year and in an attempt to boost the value of portfolios. Among the gold-miners, Central Norseman rose 170 c to 1550, Metana rose 66c to 716 and Kidston was steady at 720. Elsewhere among the miners, Renison rose 60c to 1000, Western Mining ■ jumped 38c to 538, and CRA was 10c higher at 736. BHP finished the week 2c lower at 870 after releasing its lower-than-expected sAust397M interim profit. On the industrial boards, the banks were heavily traded in the wake of a series of domestic interest rate cuts and as institutions re-ar-ranged their portfolios. National rose 44c to 600, Westpac advanced 26c to 526, but ANZ fell 14c to 586. Robert Holmes a

5 Court’s statement that his d Bell Resources would decide early this week if it y would make a counter-bid 1 for Herald and Weekly Times was released after v the. close of trading, but o brokers forecast heavy trading in HWT today. HWT, for which News intends offering 1200 c a e share, finished the week e 20c higher at 1240, News n rose 10c to 1680 and Queensland Press rose e 100 c to 1650, while Fairc fax was steady at 1100.