The market finished the week at 6,326.40, down 65.08 points from the previous week's close of 6,391.48. On Friday's trade the All Ordinaries finished down 1.30 points or 0.02 per cent.
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On Monday, healthcare stocks came under pressure. ResMed (RMD) – which makes products to help those with sleep disorders – fell by 2.9 per cent ahead of its profit results due to be released later in the week. Healthscope (HSO) lost ground after the private hospital operator agreed to sell its Asian pathology business for $279m.
Also on Monday, Ardent Leisure (AAD) fell by three per cent. The Dreamworld owner’s warning of a $91 - $95m loss from its theme park division seemed to be a catalyst. AAD ended the week on $1.805.
On Tuesday, BHP Billiton (BHP) added seven points to the ASX 200. The miner has improved strongly over the past four months, recouping March’s 7.5 per cent tumble. Late last week, BHP announced the A$14.5bn sale of its underperforming US shale assets to BP. BHP ended the week on $33.38.
Wednesday, Rio Tinto lifted 45 cents, or 0.6 per cent after reporting a 33 per cent jump in first-half net profit to $US4.38 billion ($5.9 billion), driven by a recovery in commodity prices. Rio Tinto's underlying earnings - which excludes impairments and exchange losses - rose 12 per cent to $US4.416 billion from $US3.9 billion a year earlier. RIO ended the week on $76.54.
On Thursday, Apple became the first $1 trillion publicly-listed US company, crowning a decade-long rise fuelled by its iPhone that transformed it from a niche player in personal computers into a global powerhouse spanning entertainment and communications.
The tech company's stock jumped 2.8 per cent to as high as $US207.05, bringing its gain to about nine per cent since Tuesday when it reported June-quarter results above expectations and said it bought back $20 billion of its own shares.
At the close of weekly trading, the gold price finished at $1,215.90 per ounce, the WTI oil price traded at $68.99 a barrel, and the Australian dollar was worth US $0.7362.
