At lunch on Friday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end the week with a sizeable decline. The benchmark index is currently down 1.5% to 5,952 points.
Here's what has been happening on the market today:
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AMP update disappoints.
The AMP Limited (ASX: AMP) share price has crashed lower after releasing an update on its expectations for the first half of FY 2020. The financial services company revealed that it expects to report an underlying profit for retained businesses in the order of $140 million to $150 million. This appears to have fallen well short of expectations and was due to a range of negative factors. These include market volatility and a credit loss provision in AMP Bank.
Big four banks tumble on class action news.
The big four banks are all tumbling lower on Friday and acting as a major drag on the ASX 200. The worst performers in the group today are the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price and the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price with declines of approximately 2.2%. This appears to be due to news that the banks are to be hit with a new class action. AMP is also being hit with the same class action.
Super Retail surprises.
The Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) share price has been a very positive performer on Friday after the release of a surprisingly strong FY 2020 update. After experiencing a 26.2% decline in monthly like-for-like sales in April, they rebounded 26.5% in May and 27.7% in June. This led to Super Retail recording total sales growth of 4.2% in FY 2020. In addition to this, the retailer advised that it expects its pro forma EBITDA to be between $327 million and $328 million. This will be up from $315 million a year earlier.
Best and worst ASX 200 performers.
The best performer on the ASX 200 on Friday has been the Super Retail share price by some distance. Its shares have jumped 11% higher following its aforementioned update. The worst performer has been the AMP share price. It is down over 11% after its guidance for the first half of FY 2020 fell well short of expectations.
