ASX Round-Up: ASX Finishes Week at 5,462.3 Points on Positive Retail Sales

The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) closed at 5,462.3 points today, up 16.4 points from the previous session, as per The Sydney Morning Herald. The gain was caused by stronger-than-expected local economic data.

Commenting on the development, Brian Parker, a senior investment consultant at MLC Investment Management, told the news outlet, “[t]he biggest risk to equities is that over the past five years share price gains have outstripped underlying company earnings growth. Australian companies have done a particularly good job of controlling costs over the past couple of years and [are] now well placed to deliver profit growth as domestic demand accelerates.”

Experiencing gains today on the ASX were a number of mining and energy companies. Those include Paladin Energy (ASX:PDN,TSX:PDN), a uranium company with mines in Australia and Africa; it rose $0.035, or 6.14 percent, to $0.605. Similarly, mining and energy development company African Energy Resources (ASX:AFR) gained $0.001, or 1.12 percent, to hit $0.090. The company has offices in Perth, Zambia and Guernsey and holds three large coal projects in Botswana.

Not faring so well was Energy World (ASX:EWC), an integrated independent energy company that produces and sells power and natural gas, primarily in Indonesia and Australia. It was among the top losers on the ASX today, falling $0.025, or 7.14 percent, to $0.325.

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