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 rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com