Best and worst stocks on the ASX today

ASX closes down 0.5%, as investors worry about an extended US government shutdown

Mike King

Mike King is a Fool.com.au Investment Analyst and Writer. He caught the investing bug more than a decade ago, at a time when the U.S. had invaded Iraq and fear reigned in the markets. His initial success as the markets took off encouraged his passion and thirst for knowledge. With 13 years behind him at one of Australia's largest domestic banks, Mike's passion for stocks led him to join a boutique funds management firm, where he stayed for four years. A seven-year stint in equity research at one of the largest investment banks in the world followed that, giving Mike a thirst to pursue his passion further. Mike holds a Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment and a Graduate Certificate in Financial Planning. His passion is to help retail investors invest better, and that passion was one of his primary reasons for joining The Motley Fool Australia in late 2011. Mike has written thousands of articles since joining, including for Fairfax Media, Yahoo!7, Ninemsn and has also appeared on ABC's The Business. You can see all of Mikes' holdings here

Published October 4, 2013 4:26 pm AEST

The S&P / ASX 200 Index (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) has closed down 0.5% at 5,208, following the lead from offshore markets as investors become more nervous about the US government stalemate and the looming debt ceiling issue. Markets are concerned that the US could default if it doesn't raise its debt ceiling before October 17, which could spread chaos through the global markets.

Here are the top five best performing stocks in the index today.

Mount Gibson Iron (ASX: MGX) climbed 5% to 74 cents
Bradken (ASX: BKN) rose 3.2% to $5.86
Skilled Group (ASX: SKE) gained 2.9% to $3.61
Goodman Fielder (ASX: GFF) shot up 2.8% to 74.5 cents
Iluka Resources (ASX: ILU) added 2.7% to $11.50

These stocks were the losers on the day.

NRW Holdings (ASX: NWH) fell 7.8% to $1.355
Paladin Energy (ASX: PDN) dropped 6% to 47 cents
Leighton Holdings (ASX: LEI) lost 4.6% to $16.74
Energy World Corporation (ASX: EWC) slipped 4.1% to 46.4 cents
Panaust (ASX: PNA) closed down 3.8% at $2.04

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Motley Fool writer/analyst Mike King owns shares in Leighton Holdings.

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