WEEKLY AUSTRALIAN STOCK EXCHANGE (ASX)
ANALYSIS & SUMMARY - SATURDAY EDITION

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY FEBRUARY 1ST. 2002

AORD: 3386.00 = -18.00

S&P/ASX200: 3445.5 = -18.70

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed lower on Friday, after recent rallies after the US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady. Over the week, the AORD lost 3.3 points, while the S&P/ASX200 declined 3.2 points. Gainers Included: ABC Learning Centres Ltd, Adelaide Bank, Adsteam Marine, Amalgamated Holdings, Amcor, AV Jennings Homes, AWB Ltd, BHP Billiton, Bougainville Copper, Brazin Ltd, Brickworks Ltd, Bridgestone Australia Ltd, Climax Mining, Commonwealth Bank, Didasko, Huntley Investments, Lang Corp, Lihir Gold, LookSmart Ltd, MXL Ltd, Naomi Cotton Co-operatives, Newcrest Mining, Normandy Mining, Novus Petroleum, Nufarm Ltd, Oil Search Ltd, Onesteel, Open Telecommunications, OPSM Group Ltd, Pan Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Portman Ltd, Progen Industries Ltd, Qantas Ltd, Quiktrak Network, Rio Tinto Ltd, Toll Holdings Ltd, Villa World Ltd, West Australian Metals, Western Metals Ltd, and WRF Securities Ltd.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Bridgestone Australia gained 34.45% after posting a profit and paying dividends for the first time in 2 years.

• LookSmart gained 19.51% after reporting a fiscal Q4 pretax profit on Thursday - its first ever profit.

• Telstra led telecommunications shares lower.

• News Corp lost 2.12% on fears that it might post disappointing results on February 13th. Media shares were taken down with it too.

• Gold metals gained due to strong London prices, and on expectations that prices will continue to gain.

• Rio Tinto gained 3.37% after reporting strong figures on Thursday.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed lower on Friday due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• St George Bank lost 0.44% after Fitch assigned its A$200 Million subordinates notes a Single-A credit rating, one step below the bank's senior notes.

• Banking shares closed lower today.

• Qantas gained 2.91% on market rumours that rival Ansett Airlines might lose a major financial backer. Ansett's new owners, Tesna, denied the rumour.

• Toll Holdings and Lang Corp gained 8.67% and 5.19% respectively after paying A$1.17 billion on Thursday to acquire 2 main railroads as the Australian government privatizes assets.

• National Rail Corp (NRC) found its credit rating downgraded by Standard & Poor's on Friday.

• ANOTHER ADDITION: We now have services for Australia, Canada, South Africa, UK & Ireland, and United States. We will continue our qualitative, informative, and useful content policies at all our portals. Thank you for your support.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY JANUARY 25TH. 2002

AORD: 3382.70 = +10.80

S&P/ASX200: 3442.3 = +11.50

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed higher on Friday. Over the week, the AORD gained 51.5 points, while the S&P/ASX200 gained 55.3 points. Gainers Included: ANZ Banking Group, Cluff Resources Pacific NL, Commonwealth Bank, Echo Technologies, ERG Limited, Harvestroad, Millepede Internationa, MIM Holdings Ltd, National Australian Bank, National Foods Ltd, New Holland Mining Ltd, News Corp, Normandy Mining, PBL Ltd, Rio Tinto Ltd, Seven Networks, SIPA Resources International, Stratatel, Telstra, Tuart Resources, Village Roadshow Ltd, Westfield Holdings Ltd, Western Metals Ltd, and Woolworths Ltd.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• National Foods gained 1.33% after acquiring cheese company, King of Island, for about A$77 million.

• WMC Lost 2.22% after Alcoa made it clear that it was not in talks with the company.

• Poor metals prices in London affected miners.

• News Corp gained 1.60% after announcing that the Co-COO of its Sky Global Networks, Chase Carey, has resigned, but will maintain his board seat at News Corp.

• BHP Billiton lost 0.78% despite reporting Q2 strong Iron Ore output and shipments, and consistent oil output.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed lower on Friday due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Woodside Petroleum closed lower despite Standard & Poor's announcement that, Woodside's credit is not yet threatened by its attempts to acquire gas and oil interests from Germany's Veba Oil and Gas GmbH.

• Banking shares closed mixed today.

• Energy Developments closed 5.50% lower after announcing that it is suspending temporary the testing of its New South Wales waste recycling plant.

• Entertainment and Media shares recovered today led by News Corp. PBL, Seven Networks, and Village Roadshow.

• AFTER CLOSE: US markets closed mixed as the Dow rallied, while the NASDAQ was pulled lower by poor earnings from JDS Uniphase, Peoplesoft, and security firm, RSA.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY JANUARY 18TH. 2002

AORD: 3331.20 = -5.0

S&P/ASX200: 3387.0 = -6.10

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed lower on Friday, due mostly to the sub-par earnings and outlooks of North American giants IBM, Microsoft, and Nortel Networks. Over the week, the AORD lost 28.9 points, while the S&P/ASX200 lost 30.6 points. Gainers Included: Amity Oil NL, Anaconda Nickel Ltd, Austral Coal Ltd, BHP Billiton, Billibong International, Bligh Oil & Minerals NL, Boral Ltd, Brazin Ltd, BRL Hardy Ltd, Colorado Group Ltd, Data#3, Devine Ltd, Electrometals Mining Ltd, E*Trade Australia Ltd, Fosters Group Lld, Leighton Holdings, Netcomm Ltd, Pacifica Group Ltd, Powerlan Ltd, QBE Insurance, Q-VIS Ltd, Village Roadshow Ltd, Wattyl Ltd, and Woodside Petroleum.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported that New Residential Building Work in the September quarter rose 12.2% to A$4.3 billion. Non-residential Building Work rose 2.9% to A$3.1 billion, while Value of New Private Sector Homes rose 5.4% over the year.

• ABS reported over the week that, Australia's Unemployment Rate held steady at 6.7% in December.

• Powerlan Ltd. gained 6.10% after announcing that it will close its IT training centers in Sydney and Melbourne because they are not profitable. The Brisbane center, which is profitable, will continue to operate.

• Normandy Mining lost 1.95% as it waited on the AngloGold offer to expire. AngloGold, which lost 1.15%, withdrew its offer after the markets closed.

• Computer rental company, Hire Intelligence International, closed unchanged on its first day of trading.

• AWB lost 0.24% despite announcing that Wheat for the November harvest will rise 7%.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed lower on Friday due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Harvey Norman lost 1.55% despite reporting that sales for the 6 months ending December 31st. rose 9.5% to A$1.40 billion.

• Westpac Banking lost 0.59% after refusing to discus rumours that it is interested in NM Rothschild & Sons' A$10.5 billion fund operations.

• Oil and Gas company Santos lost 6.43% after warning that its full year 2001 net profits will be about 10% lower than a year ago.

• Colorado Group Ltd. gained 2.60% after acquiring women's footwear company, Diana Ferrari Pty.

• Contractor Leighton Holdings gained 0.98% after announcing that it has more than A$1 billion worth of contract work at hand.

• ANZ Banking lost 0.32% despite announcing its long awaited global partnership with ING, the Dutch giant financial services company. Banking shares were weak today.

• BHP Billiton and Woodside Petroleum gained after their North West Shelf Project partnership was short-listed for the A$750 million a year Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) supply contract to China.

• Telstra lost 0.18% after announcing on Friday that it will start charging mobile phone carriers who want to switch to rivals a A$150 switching fee.

• AFTER CLOSE: US markets closed lower after IBM, Microsoft, and Nortel reported less than stellar results on Thursday.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY JANUARY 11TH. 2002

AORD: 3360.10 = +8.30

S&P/ASX200: 3417.60 = +8.50

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed higher on Friday. Over the week, the AORD lost 14.2 points, while the S&P/ASX200 lost 18.1 points. Gainers Included: Adelaide Bank, Adelaide Resources Ltd, Amadeus Petroleum NL, Anglogold, Anvil Mining, ANZ Banking Group, Commonwealth Bank, Computershare, CPH Investment, Dioro Exploration NL, Durban Roodeport Deep, ECAT Development Capital, Fosters Group, Goldfields, Goodman Fielder, Mayne Nickless, MIM Holdings, National Australian Bank, Normandy Mining, Orica Ltd, Oxiana Resources, Qantas, Seven Network, Striker Resources Ltd, Telstra, Union Capital, Village Roadshow Ltd, Westfield Holdings, Westpac Bank, and Woolworths Australia Ltd.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Normandy Mining gained 1.60% after Newmont mining announced that the US Securities and Exchange Commission cleared its A$4.35 billion bid for Normandy. Separately, AngloGold, which gained 2.06% in regular trading, announced that it is extending its A$4.31 billion bid for Normandy for one more week. Newmont Mining closed lower.

• Santos lost 0.47% after selling some of its South West Queensland oil exploration stake to Beach Petroleum. Beach Petroleum closed unchanged.

• Goodman Fielder gained 3.95% on Friday, and has gained all week on market rumours that Pacific Equity Partners is making a fresh bid. Both companies denied the rumour.

• Computershare recovered today by gaining 2.67% after losing over 30% on Thursday, after giving a profit warning late Wednesday.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed higher on Friday due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Westfield Holdings gained 2.89% despite news that UK property company Liberty International is acquiring over 5% of US Shopping Malls operator, Rodamco North America. Westfield owns 24% of Rodamco and has been trying to gain control of the company.

• Banking shares were some of the best performers today.

• Orica Ltd. gained 0.93% after the chemicals and explosives company announced the closure of its Altona plant, and the sell of its Australian Vinyl Corp. unit to CPH Investment for A$40 million. CPH Investment gained 3.70% on the news.

• AMP lost 0.05% after selling 50% of Royal Automobile Club of Queensland and the Royal Automobile Association of South Australia to Suncorp-Metway for A$135 million. Suncorp-Metway closed unchanged.

• Metals shares closed lower due to a poor metals trading day on London Metals Exchange (LME).

• AFTER CLOSE: US markets closed lower after Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan made cautious statements about the economy.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY JANUARY 4TH. 2002

AORD: 3374.30 = +15.80

S&P/ASX200: 3435.70 = +16.10

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed higher on Friday, the first week of trading in 2002. Over the week, the AORD gained 10.5 points, while the S&P/ASX200 gained 8.6 points. Gainers Included: Adelaide Bank Ltd, Advanced Energy Systems, AMP Ltd, Asia Pacific Specialty Chemicals, Australian Energy, Australian Infrastructure Group, Australian Oil & Gas, Australian Pipeline Trust Ltd, AXA Asia Pacific Holdings, BHP Billiton, Brambles Industries, Cape Range, Deutsche Office Trust, Electrometals Mining, Gantel Retail Trust, Goldfields Ltd, Growth Property Investment, Hunter Hall International, Iluka Resources Ltd, Lend Lease Ltd, Littir Gold, LookSmart Ltd, MIM Holdings, Newcrest Mining, News Corp, Normandy Mining, Pacific Dunlop, PBL Ltd, QBE Insurance Group, Rio Tinto Australia Ltd, Seven Network, Singapore Telecom, Skipe Networks, Telstra, Ten Network Holdings, West Australian Metals Ltd, Westfield Holdings, and Woolworths Australia Ltd.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Normandy Mining gained 1.64% to a 4 year high after US based Newmont Mining raised its offer. AngloGold lost 3.45% after making it known that it will not raise its offer.

• Lend Lease gained 2.96% after announcing that it Bovis division has been awarded the contract to oversee the clean up of New York's World Trade Center (WTC).

• Growth Property Investment gained 27.12% after confirming The Financial Review's story that it is considering investments in Biotechnology, Gaming and Military.

• Symex Holdings lost 16.03% after announcing that it will consider a capital increase in its merger with Asia Pacific Chemicals. Asia Pacific gained 10% on the news.

• Cardiac Technologies lost 9.68% despite announcing that its agricultural and Pest control unit, Bioglobal Pty. Ltd, is seeking a patent for a technology that controls the Helicoverpa Moth.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed the week higher due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Hillgrove Gold was placed in receivership by its largest shareholder, Tronoh Mines Malaysia Bhd.

• Financial services company Hunter Hall International gained 1.59% after announcing that it expects about A$2.2 million in profits for the 6 months ended December 31st.

• Software developer Clarity International lost 13.04% after announcing that its losses fro the 6 months ended December 31st. will be A$5.5 million, a A$3.7 million increase from year ago.

• AFTER CLOSE: US markets closed higher after a better than expected employment data fuelled optimism of a quicker global economic recovery.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY DECEMBER 28TH. 2001

AORD: 3363.80 = +9.10

S&P/ASX200: 3427.10 = +9.50

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed higher on Friday. Over the week, the AORD gained 49.7 points, while the S&P/ASX200 gained 52.6 points. Gainers Included: ANZ Banking Group, Aussiecover, Bankwest, BHP Billiton, Brambles Industries, Coles Myer Ltd, Commonwealth Bank, CSL Ltd, David Jones Ltd, General Property Trust, Hansen Technologies Ltd, Heartlink, Isis Communications, Lang Corp, Littir Gold, LookSmart Ltd, Macquarie Bank, Macquarie Infrastructure Investment Management, Macquarie Office Trust, National Australian Bank, News Corp, Novogen, Oil Search Ltd, Open Telecommunications, Orogen Minerals Ltd, PBL Ltd, QBE Insurance, Saracen Mineral, Simsmetal Ltd, St. George Bank, Toll Holdings, Wesfarmer, Western Metals, Westfield Holdings Ltd, Woolworths Ltd, and Zimbabwe Platinum Mines.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Homeloans Ltd closed unchanged after sealing its deal to acquire Access Home Loans.

• ANZ Banking Group gained 0.45% after the Sydney Morning Star reported that the bank has a credit exposure to Argentina of only US$50 million.

• Hutchinson Telecommunications closed unchanged despite being one of the most heavily traded shares of the day. Speculation is that its parent, Hutchinson Wampoa, might acquire Hutchinson Telecommunications and take it private.

• AngloGold closed unchanged after raising its bid for Normandy Mining to $1.81 a share, which is still below Newmont Mining's bid off $1.86 a share. Normandy Mining closed lower.

• Retailers David Jones and Woolworths gained 1.71% and 0.45% respectively after reporting that their Christmas sales was within their expectations.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed the week higher due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Shopping Centre developer Westfield Holdings gained 0.82% after dropping its legal actions against Dutch developer, Rodamco North America. Westfield has been trying to take control of this rival developer, which Westfield owns 8% of. Analysts are hopeful that a less hostile deal can now be worked out.

• Insurers, NRMA Insurance and Suncorp Metway, closed lower due to their exposure to claims from the bush fires raging in the state of New South Wales (NSW).

• Novogen gained 3.96% on Friday, and closed the week higher after announcing Monday that, its anti-Cancer drug Phenoxodial™ is showing significant progress in clinical trials.

• Oil Search and Orogen Minerals of Papua New Guinea gained 0.68% and 0.66% respectively after their A$1.2 billion merger.

• Hansen Technologies Ltd. gained 4.17% after announcing that contracts have already been exchanged for its acquisition Strategic Vision International.

• AFTER CLOSE: Crude oil cartel OPEC announced that beginning January 1st, it will cut its daily crude oil production by 1.5 million barrels a day for 6 months. Non-OPEC countries have already agreed to a cut of about 465,000 barrels a day.

• AFTER CLOSE: US consumer confidence, and Home Sales data was very strong, thus sparking a worldwide rally on hopes that the US recession might see a recovery next year.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY DECEMBER 21ST. 2001

AORD: 3314.10 = +28.00

S&P/ASX200: 3374.50 = +30.60

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed higher on Friday. Over the week, the AORD gained 76.4 points, while the S&P/ASX200 gained 83.7 points. Gainers Included: AMP Ltd, AngloGold Ltd, Antisense Therapeutics, ANZ Banking Group, Australian Food & Fibre, Brambles Industries, Commonwealth Bank, Foodland Associates Ltd, James Hardie Industries Ltd, Lang Corp, Lend Lease Ltd, Littir Gold, National Australian Bank, Netcomm Ltd, News Corp, Normandy Mining Ltd, Olea Australis Ltd, Online Advantage, PBL Ltd, Prime Television Ltd, Rio Tinto Ltd, Santos Ltd, Select-Tel, Synergy Metals, Seven Network Ltd, Telstra, Ten Network Holdings Ltd, Toll Holdings Ltd, Village Roadshow Ltd, West Australian Newspaper Holdings Ltd, Westpac, WMC Ltd, and Woolworths Ltd.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Australia's Index of Leading Economic Indicators rose 1.3% in October to 143.1.

• Oil Search Ltd. lost 0.91% on news that it is in merger talks with Papua New Guinea company, Orogem Minerals.

• Kerry Packer's PBL Ltd. gained 0.41% after announcing a television partnership with Prime Television New Zealand. Under the 5 year deal, PBL will have the option to buy 50% of Prime New Zealand. Prime Television gained 4.46% on the deal.

• Lend Lease gained 1.63% on news that the UK government has selected it to be part of a major redevelopment effort in London.

• Commonwealth Bank gained 2.39% Friday after announcing late Thursday that it intends to restructure its operations in to 4 business units.

• ANZ Banking gained 0.99% after announcing that it will complete a global Fund management joint venture in the next few months.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed the week higher due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Ten Network Holdings gained 1.55% after naming Nick Falloon, the former CEO of PBL, as its new Chairman.

• Normandy Mining gained 1.67% after regulators denied AngloGold's request to block the bid from Newmont Mining. AngloGold closed higher too.

• Pension fund and insurance company AMP gained 3.06% after withdrawing its proposed A$800 million in vestment in China Pacific Life Insurance.

• Woolworths gained 1.84% after announcing that it is still interested in acquiring Woolworths New Zealand, even though the company is no longer up for sale.

• Rio Tinto Ltd. gained 0.97% as analysts welcome its 20-year Iron Ore deal with Baosteel Corp, China's Largest steel maker.

• WMC gained 1.48% after stating on Friday that it doesn't know if Alcoa is still interested in acquiring it.

• Entertainment company, Village Roadshow, gained 2.67% after teaming up with Warner Brothers to bid for the remaining 14.3% of Seaworld Property Trust they don't yet own.

• Seven Network gained 1.03% after wining a partial victory today. A Federal Court on Friday ruled that Seven Network can have access to the rights documents that gave National Rugby League (NRL) and Australian Football League (AFL) broadcast rights to News Corp.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY DECEMBER 14TH. 2001

AORD: 3237.70 = -21.30

S&P/ASX200: 3290.80 = -21.70

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed lower on Friday. Over the week, the AORD lost 75 points, while the S&P/ASX200 declined 70.9 points. Gainers Included: AngloGold Ltd, Australon Ltd, Dioro Exploration, Eqitx Ltd, Geographe Resources Ltd, James Hardie Industries, Midware Ltd, Minerals Corp, My Money GRP-RTS, NSL Health Ltd, Phileo Australia Ltd, Qantas, and Whittakers Ltd.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Australia's Employment grew by 4,100 jobs in November, which was well better than the 10,000+ job losses economists were expecting. The Unemployment Rate declined from 7.1% in October to 6.7%.

• James Hardie gained 6.93% after informing investors yesterday that it has bought more Fibre Cement capacity in the US.

• News Corp lost 1.95% after Vivendi Universal announced Thursday its plans to sell a chunk of its 22% it owns in News Corp controlled pay TV operator, BskyB Plc.

• AngloGold gained 0.44% despite Normandy's advise to shareholders to vote in favour of Newmont Mining's bid. Normandy lost 1.12%.

• Charters Towers Gold closed unchanged after withdrawing its offer for Gateway Mining NL. Gateway Mining lost 2.13%.

• National Australia Bank (NAB) lost 0.49% despite announcing the disposal of its Homeside unit.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) lost 5 straight days of the week due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Fruit processor SPC closed unchanged despite a Victoria Supreme Court ruling that approved its merger with Ardmona.

• Broadcaster PBL lost 1.32% as the market receives mixed news on the health of its majority shareholder, Kerry Packer.

• Westpac, which gained on Thursday for information shareholders that it started the new fiscal year on a strong note, lost 1.38% due to the general weakness in the financial sector.

• Lang Corp lost 0.92% after announcing that it is resubmitting its joint bid with Virgin Blue for bankrupt airline, Ansett's assets.

• Banking giant AMP lost 0.44% after denying rumours yesterday that it has a large capital raising plan in the works.

• US markets closed higher due to favourable Industrial Production, CPI, and Business Inventories data.

• The US Federal Reserve Bank cut its interest rates on Tuesday by 25 basis points (0.25%) to their lowest levels in 40 years. A transcript of the US Federal Reserve FOMC meeting showed a 50 basis point (0.50%) rate cut support was strong.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY DECEMBER 7TH. 2001

AORD: 3312.70 = +19.60

S&P/ASX200: 3361.70 = +8.90

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The Australian market closed higher on Friday. Over the week, the AORD gained 35.8 points, while the S&P/ASX200 declined 24.2 points. Gainers Included: BHP Billiton, Brambles Industries, Davnet, Insurance My Way, MIM Holdings Ltd, Monadelphous Group Limited, News Corp, Normandy Mining, Q-Vis Limited, Telstra Corp, UECOMM, United Energy, Victoria Petroleum, Westfield America Trust, and Westfield Trust.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• Australia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 1.1% in the Third Quarter (Q3) of 2001.

• News Corp gained 4.21% after the Financial Times reported that, News Corp is considering making an acquisition offer for German media giant, Kirch Gruppe. News Corp already owns 22% of Kirch Gruppe's premium Pay TV business.

• Telstra gained 1.65% after reaching a deal with its 4 major competitors on Unconditional Local Loop Services (ULLS) prices, which will get regulators ACCC off its back.

• Monadelphous Group and Brambles Industries gained 7.50% and 1.21% respectively after wining a A$50 million contract from Woodside Energy to provide general services at its North West Shelf Phase IV expansion project at the Burrup peninsula in Western Australia.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed lower due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• United Energy Ltd. gained 0.40% after naming a new CEO and Board Chairman today.

• Normandy Mining gained 0.60% after Australian Authorities ruled that, AngloGold could not block a rival bid for Normany from Newmont Mining of the US over the A$38 million break-deal fee.

• Goldfields Limited and Delta Gold Limited closed 2% and 0.44% lower respectively, despite getting the go ahead for their merger from the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB). A combined Goldfields and Delta Gold will create one of Australia's largest gold companies.

• Q-Vis Limited gained 44.69% after announcing that the clinical trials for its G6 Model Q-Vs Quantum 213mm solid state refraction laser vision correction technology was not just good, but better than the benchmark set by the US' Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

• Oil shares were hit hard in Australia and around the world today as analysts doubt if an OPEC and Non-OPEC production cut will really help the slumping prices.

• Banking shares closed lower as Enron credit exposure continue to be a concern.

• US markets closed lower after the Unemployment Rate rose to 5.7%.

• ANOTHER ADDITION: We now have services for Australia, Canada, South Africa, UK & Ireland, and United States. We will continue our qualitative, informative, and useful content policies at all our portals. Thank you for your support.

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MARKET SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY NOVEMBER 30TH. 2001

AORD: 3276.90 = +9.40

S&P/ASX200: 3337.50 = +8.00

MOST ACTIVE STOCKS & SECTORS

The markets closed higher today. Gainers included: BHP Billiton, Coles Myer Ltd, Deutsche Office Trust, ECAT Development Capital Ltd, Macquarie Infrastructure Group, MIM Holdings Ltd, Minotaur Resources, News Corp, Normandy Mining, Qantas, Singapore Telecommunications Ltd, Telstra Corp, and Woodside Petroleum.

MAIN REASONS FOR ACTIVITY

• BHP Billiton gained 2.38% after naming its CFO, Chip Goodyear, as the new Chief Development Officer (CDO). Yesterday, BHP Billiton's Canadian unit, Rio Algom Ltd, reported a fiscal Q1 profit and an increase in shipment.

• The 4 major Australian banks: ANZ, CAB, NAB, and Westpac closed lower due to their exposure to debt ridden and troubled US energy trader, Enron.

• Minotaur Resources gained over 20% after reporting on Friday that its outback exploration work seem to show evidence of a big Gold and Copper find.

• The London Stock Exchange (LSE) closed mixed due to.............Visit our BusinessJeeves UK & Ireland portal to read our summary and analysis of the London Stock Exchange.

• Normandy Mining gained 1.27% after AngloGold sweetened its takeover deal with a cash increase to a total value of A$3.7 billion, which is well above US based Newmont Mining's A$3.4 billion offer.

• WMC gained 0.43% on Friday after Alcoa refused to sweeten its takeover offer on Thursday.

• ANOTHER ADDITION: We now have services for Australia, Canada, South Africa, UK & Ireland, and United States. We will continue our qualitative, informative, and useful content policies at all our portals. Thank you for your support.

• JOIN THE DISCUSSIONS: Due to the immense popularity this column has received recently, and the willingness of our guests to communicate with each other, we have expanded our message boards so as to serve you better. Please check out (and post on) our NEW expanded message boards here

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