US Stocks End Lower as Manufacturing Contracts... | BHP .. Can it Sustain Its Dividend?? | ECB May Increase QE |

Good Morning, A beautiful day this morning here in Melbourne, as we head into this week’s Preliminary Finals … Surely we don’t want to see two Perth teams play in Melbourne @ this year’s AFL Grand Final Next Friday is a “Public Holiday” only here in Melbourne… markets are open… all other states are open for business… Good for our economy? Paul Stephen, Executive Director of Crusader Resources has pointed out the large disparity of gold priced in AUD and BRL… Interestingly, Gold in AUD and in BRL (Brazilian Rias) is actually rallying significantly, as our currency depreciates… Interesting charts set out below: Last night, US stocks ended down slightly, led by losses in materials and energy shares as weak Chinese and US factory data added to growth worries. BHP Billiton will ask Australian shareholders to effectively sacrifice some of the company's franking credits to allow it to meet its dividend requirements to its British shareholders. The SPI is up 11 points this morning