- The ASX200 is trading 0.52% lower at 7288.70 after lunchtime.
- PointsBet rallies on expansion into an eighth US state, Virginia.
- Qantas shares dip after releasing H1 update expecting $1.1bn loss.
The Australian market is trading 0.52% lower today at 7288.70 after lunchtime as a sell-off in healthcare stocks weighs down the key index, led by Csl tanking 8.1% after the third-largest company by market value on the ASX raised $6.3bn to fund an acquisition.
A jobs boom occurred in November as the east coast emerged from lengthy lockdowns, as shown in data released today. For the month the Australian economy added 336,100 jobs, well above the expected 200,000 for the month, which helped push the jobless rate lower to 4.6%.
The tech sector is rallying today after a strong session for the Nasdaq on Wall St overnight, with Wisetech Global up 5%, Tyro Payments rallying 2.85% and Appen trading 2.76% higher.
Bitcoin is trading 2.32% higher over the last 24-hours at US$49,025 at 1:30pm AEDT.
PointsBet is rallying today after releasing an update on its US operations, announcing the launch of online and mobile sports betting operations in Virginia, the eighth operations state for the company. The Virginia Lottery recently issued PointsBet with an official supplier licence to offer online sports wagering in the state.
Making headlines, Qantas shares are taking a hit today after the national carrier provided a market update revealing it expects to post a loss of $1.1bn during the first half of FY22. Qantas management also advised it expects costs to ramp-up in the second half of FY22 reflecting all Australian-based employees returning to work. CEO Alan Joyce said ?this has been one of the worst halves of the entire pandemic?.
And a Sushi Sushi outlet in Surfers Paradise, Queensland, is for sale for $1m worth of Bitcoin. The owners are selling the outlet in a world-first, all-bitcoin deal worth around 14.6 bitcoins at the cryptocurrency?s current rate.