The ASX200 ended September and the quarter with a savage 2.3% slump on Wednesday that also wiped $41 billion from the market’s value.
But it will start October and the final quarter of 2020 with a small gain if the 10 point rise in the ASX 24 overnight futures platform is any guide.
That was after Wall Street ended a losing month but winning quarter (See separate story) with a solid set of gains on Wednesday.
Wednesday’s slide took the ASX’s monthly loss for September to 4% and not only ended the big rally from the depths of the COVID-19 slump in late March but ushered in the start of what will be a grinding bear market.
Not even a sharp rise in iron ore prices during the session in Asia could halt the sell-off.
The market fell 1.4% (84 points) for the quarter, having jumped by 16.2% between April and June and trading steady through the August earnings season which turned out better than expected and promised a solid September.
That didn’t happen and as the month when on the market bounced around, taking its lead from Wall Street, ignoring that and gradually grinding lower, culminating in Wednesday’s 136 point plunge, when the overnight futures market had a 49 fall penciled in.
In fact, the market fell more than 1% at the start and ground its way lower, briefly taking note of the bellicose, hectoring Presidential Debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
The ASX 200 ended at 5,815.9, down from 5,897.9 at the end of June.
Asian markets take a break from today – Mainland China heads on holiday for a week from tomorrow, as will Hong Kong and Taiwan. South Korean markets take a break on Friday.
The Shanghai market lost around 6% for the quarter.
The Aussie dollar was around 71.65 US cents at 6 am Thursday, up on the day and also up 2.7% for the quarter, but down 2.1% for September.
Gold futures finished lower on Wednesday, falling back under $US1,900 an ounce and producing a loss for the month, but prices still rose for the quarter.
Comex December gold fell $US7.70, or 0.4%, to settle at $US1,895.50 an ounce. December silver lost 95 cents, or 3.9%, to end at $US23.494 an ounce.
For the month, gold lost 4.2% but was up 5.2% over the September quarter. Comex silver slumped by nearly 18% in September but was still up a solid 26% for the quarter.
December copper settled at $3.0325 a pound, up 1.4% for the session, but down around 1% for the month. Copper gained more than 11% for the quarter.
But iron ore prices ended the month and quarter with a bang, jumping 5% on Wednesday back over $US120 a tonne for 62% Fe fines delivered to northern China, according to Metal Bulletin data.
The surge of $US5.86 a tonne came on the eve of the week-long holiday in China as steel mills bought stocks for delivery in November and December.
The sharp jump took the quarterly gain to a massive 24%.
September proved to be a mixed month for oil and left not much for the quarter.
Wednesday saw West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery rise 93 cents, or 2.4%, to settle at $US40.22 a barrel in New York as US stockpiles fell last week.
Prices based on the front-month contracts saw a monthly fall of 5.6%, but ended 2.4% higher for the quarter, according to Dow Jones Market Data. They had posted gains in each of the last four months.
In Europe, the December Brent crude contract which became the front-month at the end of the session, ended up 74 cents, or 1.8% at $US42.30 an ounce. November Brent crude which expired at the end of the day’s regular trading, dipped 8 cents, or 0.2%, at $US40.95 a barrel.
Based on the front months, Brent prices were down 9.6% for the month and posted a quarterly loss of 0.5%.
