The S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) has ended the day well off its highs, registering a gain of just 0.08% at the close.
Despite initially shaking off negative leads from Wall Street where the Dow Jones was down 0.56% and the S&P 500 fell 0.65%, the market was unable to hold its gains after data showing China factory activity had fallen for a second month.
News that HSBC's flash China manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) fell 1.2 points to 48.3 in February dented investor enthusiasm, particularly amongst mining stocks, the materials sector lost 0.33%. The remaining sectors were mixed with consumer discretionary the best performer with a gain of 0.95%.
Here are the top five best performing stocks in the index today.
- Fairfax Media Limited (ASX: FXJ) soared 23.1% to 88 cents
- Breville Group Ltd (ASX: BRG) rallied 13.1% to $9.00
- AMP Limited (ASX: AMP) gained 9.3% to $4.92
- iiNet Limited (ASX: IIN) rose 6% to $7.95
- Leighton Holdings Limited (ASX: LEI) added 4.9% to $17.21
These stocks were the losers on the day.
