Notes as at 23rd May 2008
Brett's Total as at 22nd May - $110443
Brett's Total as at 23rd May - $107548
A drop of $2895 for the day!!
$107548 is the lowest total since the "major" investment changes on 12th May 2008!!
*** At the close of business - "Stocks close down"
The Australian share market closed down more than one per cent on weaker resource stocks and industrials, with information technology sector being the only bright spot
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 58.9 points, or 1.01 per cent, to 5,768 at the 1615 AEST finish, while the broader All Ordinaries reversed 53.8 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 5,866.2
Austock Securities senior client adviser and strategist Michael Heffernan said the domestic bourse was weaker despite a positive lead from Wall Street overnight
On Wall Street overnight, stocks rose after the oil price eased from record highs
The Dow Jones industrial average added 24.43 points, or 0.19 per cent, to 12,625.62, and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index found 3.64 points at 1,394.35
The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 16.31 points to 2,464.58
"It is ironic that last night we had a positive performance on Wall Street and we were down significantly. The day before they had a pretty strong fall and yet we were up
The only sector that was up was IT"
Mr Heffernan said the outlook for the local market over the long term was positive
"It was down today, but the fundamentals of the market are more in the direction of doing reasonably well for the rest of the year ... we're well past our low"
The gold sector was mostly off, with Newcrest down 3.10% or $1.09 to $34.06, Newmont up three cents to $5.13 and Lihir down four cents to $3.35
The price of gold in Sydney was $US917.60 per fine ounce, down $US17.10 on yesterday's close of $US934.70
Brett's shares in Worley Parsons were down by $1.72 to $37.89, a decrease of 4.33%
Brett's shares in CSL Limited were down by $1.01 to $40.35, a decrease of 2.44%
Notes as at 26th May 2008
Brett's Total as at 23rd May - $107548
Brett's Total as at 26th May - $106199
A drop of $1349 for the day!! (Friday to Monday)
The total has dropped by $4244 over the past two trading days!!
$106199 is the lowest total since the "major" investment changes on 12th May 2008!!
*** At the close of business - "Stocks close weaker"
The Australian share market closed down more than one per cent, dragged lower by the major miners after a negative lead from Wall Street
The local market got off to a poor start after US stocks fell on Friday on concerns over the rising price of oil
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 145.99 points, or 1.16 per cent, to close at 12,479.63
Here at the close, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 was 61 points lower, or 1.06 per cent, to 5707, while the broader All Ordinaries fell 58.7 points, or one per cent, to 5807.5
ABN Amro Morgans private client adviser Luke McElwaine said the local bourse followed a weak lead from Wall Street over the weekend
"It has been an interesting day The US was down heavily on Friday's close It is negative across the board"
The spot price of gold was higher and trading at $US926.85 an ounce, up $US8.20 on Friday's local close of $US918.65 an ounce
The gold miners were weaker, with Newcrest dropping 58 cents to $33.48, Newmont falling eight cents to $5.05 and Lihir shedding nine cents to $3.26
Brett's shares in Transfield Services were down by $0.39 to $8.91, a decrease of 4.19%

Transfield Services - the last twelve months

Notes as at 28th May 2008
Brett's Total as at 27th May - $106692
Brett's Total as at 28th May - $103748
A drop of $2944 for the day!!
The total has dropped by $6695 over the past four trading days!!
Highest Total - $114385 - 15th May 2008
Lowest Total - $103748 - today
This is a drop of $10637 over nine trading days!!
Down by 9.30%!!
*** At the close of business - "Stocks close down One Percent"
The Australian share market closed more than one per cent down after weaker commodity prices, particularly oil and gold, offset a positive US lead
Overnight, US stocks rose as investors bet that a sharp drop in oil prices will help shore up consumer and business spending
The Dow Jones industrial average finished up 68.72 points at 12,548.35
Here, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 66.3 points, or 1.16 per cent, at 5,648.1 while the broader All Ordinaries fell 63.9 points, or 1.1 per cent, to 5,754.5
CMC Markets senior dealer James Foulsham said the materials sector pushed the market lower
"They've been reasonably strong recently as well, so there's just a bit of profit-taking" Mr Foulsham said
"The last two or three weeks the market's really run up and it's starting to lose steam
People who've been holding for the last month or so are starting to cut their positions back
A lot of it was driven up by merger and acquisition activity and that's run out a bit now"
The spot price of gold was $US908.25, down $US17.00 on last night's Sydney close of $US925.25
Newcrest Mining tumbled $1.58 (4.67%) to $32.25, Lihir Gold slipped 17 cents to $3.12 and Newmont Mining gave up 12 cents to $4.98
Brett's shares in CSL Limited were down by $1.41 to $38.59, a decrease of 3.53%