Australian Shares End Slightly Higher Ahead of US Jobs Report

   By Rhiannon Hoyle 
 

SYDNEY--Australian shares ended a touch higher Friday after spending most of Sydney trading in the red as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the release of some closely-watched U.S. labor data.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 closed up 0.1% at 5145.0 points after rising steadily heading into the close. The index earlier traded as low as 5115.1 as market participants shied away from big bets on stocks, erring on the side of caution ahead of the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, due for release at 1230 GMT.

Among large companies, BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP.AU) fell 0.3%, while Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA.AU) rose 0.3%.

The market spiked briefly in early trading after the U.S. Labor Department Thursday reported the number of workers applying for jobless benefits had fallen last week, suggesting the world's biggest economy continues to steadily recover.

Still, investors were guarded ahead of the government's much-anticipated monthly jobs report. Rivkin analyst Tim Radford tipped heightened market volatility after the numbers are made public.

"Regardless of the result tonight there should be plenty of confusion in the market following the data release," he said, adding that "a strong result will be bitter sweet for investors as it highlights a strengthening U.S. economy while indicating tapering is on its way."

Economists polled expect the U.S. economy to have added 175,000 jobs in August, with the unemployment rate likely unchanged at 7.4%.

IG market strategist Stan Shamu said concerns about possible U.S. military action in Syria also damped interest in equities, which are widely viewed as more risky bets than assets like bonds.

Australia's gold miners underperformed once again after a slide in the precious metal's value, due largely to the more upbeat U.S. data this week. In addition to better-than-expected jobless benefits numbers, there's been robust private-sector job creation, while factory orders fell by less than anticipated.

Newcrest Mining Ltd. (NCM.AU), Australia's largest listed gold miner, fell 3.0%, while rival Silver Lake Resources Ltd. (SLR.AU) fell 6.1%.

The Australian dollar meanwhile traded in a narrow range Friday ahead of a federal election here on Saturday that is expected to deliver government to the conservative Liberal-National coalition for the first time since 2007.

Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at [e-mail]