5 things you need to know about the Australian sharemarket today

Welcome to Wednesday. Here are the five things I'm looking at today on the Australian sharemarket.

1. The S&P/ ASX 200 Index (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) has again opened flat, despite decent gains on US markets overnight. The Dow Jones gained 0.2%, while the S&P 500 added 0.1%. A number of large stocks including Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) are trading ex-dividend today, dragging the market down.
2. Iron ore miners are again in focus today, after the spot iron ore price suffered another fall overnight to hit a new 2-year low. The commodity lost 0.3% to US$88.90 per tonne. According to breakeven estimates by broker UBS, a number of iron ore producers are already loss making, including Gindalbie Metals Ltd (ASX: GBG), Grange Resources Limited (ASX: GRR) and now Atlas Iron Limited (ASX: AGO). Arrium Limited (ASX: ARI) and Mount Gibson Iron Limited (ASX: MGX) are next in the firing line.
   Perhaps surprisingly, most iron ore miners are showing positive gains today. Go figure.
3. Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) has seen its shares plunge nearly 3% in early trade, despite reporting a 10% increase in underlying net profit and meeting guidance. The travel agent says it is target a profit before tax of around $400 million next financial year – representing growth of 5-8%. As a long-term shareholder, I'm not at all worried by the share price fall. Flight Centre is keeping on doing what it does best, and its international expansion is working beautifully.
4. Tweet of the Day
   

   $WOR WorleyParsons details job cut numbers as it reports net profit and gives no 2015 guidance #ausbiz #ASX #economy https://t.co/p4GXpWpPKe

   Financial Review (@FinancialReview) August 27, 2014

   More mining services jobs to go and we've yet to hit the resource investment bottom. It's a tough gig being a mining services contractor, as we've seen with Boart Longyear Ltd (ASX: BLY) recently.

5. Stock of the Day is brought to you by Mark Woodruff – Vita Group Limited (ASX: VTG).

   Vita operates many of Telstra's retail stores and business centres and is paying a fully franked 6.7% dividend yield grossed up. More growth and higher dividends could be ahead too as Mark notes here.