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: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) has opened down 0.2%, despite positive leads from Wall Street.In the US, the Dow Jones rose 0.3% while the broader S&P 500 was up 0.2%, but the tech-heavy NASDAQ dropped 0.2%.Oil prices were up again, with Brent Crude Oil gaining 1.6% to US$58.88 per barrel, and WTI Crude added 2.7% to hit US$53.29 per barrel. (WTI stands for West Texas Intermediate and is the benchmark oil price in the US while the Brent crude oil price is more widely used in Europe.)

   The Australian dollar is up slightly against the US dollar and is currently buying 76.2 US cents.

2. It's fairly ironic, but ever since Atlas Iron Limited (ASX: AGO) suspended its shares and decided to shut down its iron ore mining operations, the iron ore price has headed higher.
   Overnight, the iron ore price rose above US$50 per tonne, gaining 4% and hitting US$50.78 per tonne.But it's unlikely to signal a sustained recovery in the iron ore price. Overwhelming supply and weak demand mean lower prices are likely for longer. The falling commodity price is already creating havoc for mining services and other companies that rely on iron ore miners for their livelihood, as we noted yesterday.
3. While the S&P/ASX 200 continues to fail to breach the psychologically important (but otherwise unimportant) level of 6,000, when you add in dividends, stocks have been the best performer since 2008, and the Accumulation Index (which includes dividends) hit a record high last month.That clearly shows the importance of dividends – and why so many Australian investors are heavily focused on companies that pay dividends such as the big four banks Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank (ASX: NAB) and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), as well as the likes of Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS).
4. Tweet of the Day
   

   Penny stocks. So small. So harmless-looking. Don't fall for it. (Unless you like losing lots of money.) pic.twitter.com/f26EIepFpE

   The Motley Fool (@themotleyfool) April 14, 2015

   Bloomberg reports that Chinese investors are obsessed with penny stocks. Don't fall for the same trap on the ASX.

5. Stock of the Day – brought to you by Tim McArthur – NIB Holdings Limited (ASX: NHF). Why NIB could be a better bet than Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL).