Australia Stocks: AWB, Babcock, CSR, Macquarie, OZ, Suncorp

By Shani Raja

Nov. 19 (Bloomberg) -- The S&P/ASX 200 Index slipped for the third day. The benchmark lost 23.60 points, or 0.7 percent, to 3,499.60 at the close in Sydney, the lowest since Aug. 20, 2004. The broader All Ordinaries Index declined 29.90 points, or 0.9 percent, to 3,483.20, while the futures index expiring in December dropped 0.2 percent to 3,544.

Mining shares: BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP AU), the world’s largest mining company, dropped A$1, or 4.1 percent, to A$23.20, the lowest since January 2006. Rio Tinto Group (RIO AU), the world’s third-biggest mining company, fell A$2.10, or 3.1 percent, to A$65.90.

Gold fell for the second day, losing 1.3 percent to $732.70 an ounce, while aluminum slid to a three-year low in London.

AWB Ltd. (AWB AU), Australia’s largest wheat exporter, surged 18 cents, or 6.9 percent, to A$2.79, the most since Nov. 3 and the benchmark’s third-biggest gainer. The company said second-half profit more than doubled, driven by increased sales at its Landmark farm merchandise unit.

Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI AU) declined 0.6 cents, or 11 percent, to 4.7 cents, a record low. The owner of Australia’s second-biggest coal-export harbor said it’s examining the sale of as much as 49 percent of the port after drawing interest from potential bidders.

Babcock & Brown Ltd. (BNB AU), the worst performing stock on the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index this year, plunged 6 cents, or 19 percent, to 25 cents, a record low. Babcock said it will accelerate job cuts and separate its businesses as it tries to avoid defaulting on A$3.1 billion ($2 billion) of debt.

CSR Ltd. (CSR AU), Australia’s third-largest maker of building products, tumbled 30 cents, or 17 percent, to A$1.42, the most since 1987. The company announced a 1-for-4 entitlement offer priced at A$1.40 a share, along with an institutional placement, aimed at raising A$482 million.

DUET Group (DUE AU), an Australian energy asset investor, surged 13 cents, or 6.2 percent, to A$2.23, the most since Nov. 3. DUET said in a statement that contrary to press speculation, it has no plans to raise new equity in the “near future,” adding that it faces no term-debt maturities until financial year 2010.

Gunns Ltd. (GNS AU), which plans a A$2 billion wood pulp mill in Australia’s Tasmania state, sank 18.5 cents, or 18 percent, to 86.5 cents, the most since 1999. Press reports said the company ended its pulp mill project in Tasmania. Gunns later issued a statement saying the reports were “inaccurate.”

Macquarie Group Ltd. (MQG AU), Australia’s biggest securities company, surged A$1.16, or 4.8 percent, to A$25.16, the highest since Nov. 12. Citigroup Inc. raised the company’s rating to “buy” from “hold.” Macquarie soared 17 percent yesterday after results that beat analyst estimates.

Suncorp-Metway Ltd. (SUN AU), Australia’s third-largest insurer, soared 58 cents, or 9.2 percent, to A$6.90, the index’s second-best performer, after Citigroup Inc. raised the company’s rating to “buy” from “hold.”

OZ Minerals Ltd. (OZL AU), the world’s second-largest zinc mining company, tumbled 10 cents, or 14 percent, to 63 cents, the lowest since July 2003. The company said it expects full- year earnings to decline because of falling metal prices and higher production costs.

Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL AU), the nation’s No. 2 oil producer, dropped A$1.06, or 3 percent, to A$33.93, the lowest in three years. Crude oil fell to the lowest in almost 22 months in New York on forecasts that U.S. oil supplies increased for an eighth week as a recession erodes demand.

To contact the reporter on this story: Shani Raja in Sydney at sraja4@bloomberg.net.