AU Morning Wrap: ASX Opens Flat; QBE, AMP Tumble

The S&P 500's energy sector gained 1.2% as Texas crude contracts, the U.S. oil-price benchmark, pushed to a new 2023 high, settling at $84.40 a barrel. Solid American fuel demand and international supply cuts have supported oil prices over the summer despite lagging consumption in China.

The sharemarket opened flat this morning, with reporting season revelations from major ASX companies playing tug-of-war with the benchmark indexes.

The utilities sector is the best performing, up 1 per cent, while financials are the worst performers, down 0.3 per cent.

AGL is up 1.2 per cent, after reporting a bottom-line loss of $1.26 billion for the full year due to previously flagged write-down.

QBE is down 2.24 per cent. The group's latest financial report showed a 10.2 per cent rise in premiums, the latest example of increasing pricing pressure on insurance customers.

AMP has tumbled 5 per cent. The financial advice and wealth management group posted a statutory net profit of $261 million for the first half of 2023.

Cettire is up 8.2 per cent, after the luxury retailer's full-year 2023 revenue doubled to $416.2 million, compared to the prior year.

The 10.2 per cent rise in premiums for Sydney-based QBE is the latest example of increasing pricing pressure on insurance customers.

QBE on Thursday announced profits of $US400 million ($612 million) for the six months to June, up from $US48 million a year earlier. The rise included a big bump from investment returns, mimicking rival Suncorp's results.

Underlying profit after tax for the major electricity and gas retailer rose 25 per cent to $281 million in the year ended June 30, up from $225 million a year earlier, when electricity suppliers were hit by particularly volatile conditions on the wholesale market.

Cement, asphalt and gravel group Boral is making steady improvements under new chief executive Vik Bansal, with price rises and good cost control enabling a 37.6 per cent lift in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to $454.4 million for the 12 months ended June 30.

Revenues were up 17.1 per cent to $3.46 billion. But the company is still not in a position to pay out any dividends.

The group will pay an interim dividend of 2.5¢ a share on underlying earnings up 11.8 per cent to 3.8¢ a share. It has returned $610 million in capital to shareholders since August last year via dividends and a share buyback program.

On an underlying basis, first-half underlying net profit of $112 million was flat on the previous period. Its banking business posted an underlying net profit that was up 23.9 per cent to $57 million.

Downer told investors last week that it would deliver an annual net loss and that it was facing a more competitive market for defence projects and ongoing difficulties with some utilities projects.

Cettire, founded by Young Rich Lister Dean Mintz, said shoppers were spending on luxury after full-year 2023 revenue doubled to $416.2 million, while adjusted EBITDA of $29.3 million was a massive $50.8 million gain on the previous period. Its bottom-line profit reached $16 million from a loss of $19 million the year before.

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