18th--Australian stocks: market weakness fears US economic outlook

Sydney, Australia, May, 2009-(ABN Newswire)-Friday U.S. stocks were lowered by the fall in financial and energy companies. The financial sector was hit after Fitch Ratings issued a warning that it was considering cutting the credit rating of nine US financial firms.　　The fall in oil prices has also plunged energy companies. The Australian stock market rose 1.3% in Friday, but still reached 4.3% per cent a week. The basic index s&p/asx200 up 49.8 points, reported 3773.2 points, and the composite index rose 1.3%, or 48.1, to 3758.9.　　The Australian market is expected to be depressed by anxiety about the US economy. Important economic situation and data in an Australian house price report in RBS, the general view that housing shortages would raise prices has been questioned.　　Economists say home prices have fallen by 7% from their peak, and may continue to fall despite interest rate cuts and an extension of the first-time housing subsidy.　　The Housing Industry association will release the March Quarter housing affordability report today. Mergers and Acquisitions News Beach Petroleum (ASX:BPT) has amassed a strategic stake in Drillsearch Energy (ASX:DLS), its acquisition target, to 13.2%.　　Beach Petroleum said it had reached a preliminary bid agreement with some shareholders. It is reported that GPT Group (ASX:GPT) will question Stockland Group (ASX:SGP), a minority shareholder, about its intention to hold shares.　　GPT chief executive Michael Cameron said he would ask Stockland's managing director to Matthew Quinn to decide whether to increase the stakes or sell them.　　Consolidated Rutile Ltd. said it had reached an agreement with Unimin Australian Ltd, under which Unimin would raise its bid for all CRL shares to $0.45 per share. Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC), a coal miner, abandoned plans to merge with Gloucester Coal (ASX:GCL).　　The Hong Kong Trading Company (SIN:N21), in Friday, will raise the Gloucester bid to 7 Australian dollars per share, or the total price of 572 million Australian dollars, Gloucester recommended to the company's bid. Key corporate news GrainCorp (ASX:GNC) announced its six-month net profit for the year ended March 31 to 32.33 million Australian dollars, while the same period last year lost 6.5 million Australian dollars. GrainCorp plans to fund institutional investorsAUD 60 million. Surf maker Billabong International (ASX:BBG) expects net profit for the year ended June 30 to fall between 1.6 and 165 million AUD, with net profit of $176.4 million last year.　　The company has launched a 290 million Australian dollar fundraising move and has cut its full-year earnings forecasts because of a downturn in retail sales in the United States.　　Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA) will retain Bankwest's 43 branches on the east coast in the next two years, although the East bank branch is still operating at a loss.　　Charles Bright, a former acting chairman of Australian Agricultural Company Limited (ASX:AAC), has resigned as director of the firm since May 17, beginning in Saturday. New Hope (ASX:NHC) 's coal sales surged 48% in the April quarter from a year earlier.　　The company also reported that its raw coal production for 3 months up to April was 2.52 million, an increase of 24% per cent year-on-year. Ausmelt Limited (ASX:AET) obtained the second lead smelting furnace contract in China. The amount of the contract is confidential, but it will bring significant operating income and profits to Ausmelt in the next two years. The company will provide an annual output of 60,000 tonnes of lead smelting furnaces to Hulunbeier Chi Hong Mining Co., HCML in Inner Mongolia, China. HCML is a subsidiary of Yunnan Metallurgical Group (YMG).