At lunch on Friday the S&P/ASX 200 index is on course to finish the week on a very positive note. At the time of writing the benchmark index is up 1.25% to 6,773.6 points.
Here's what has been happening on the market today:
Insurance Australia Group bushfire update.
The Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX: IAG) share price is pushing higher on Friday. This morning the insurance company revealed that it has received over 2,800 bushfire-related claims since the beginning of September. Due to this and severe hailstorm events in Queensland and New Zealand in November, it expects its net natural peril claim costs for the first half to be ~$400 million post-quota share. This compares to its perils allowance of $320 million.
Northern Star completes Super Pit acquisition.
The Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price looks set to end the week on a high after completing its Super Pit acquisition. Northern Star paid a total of US$800 million to Newmont Goldcorp Corporation and will now co-own the highly rated gold mine with Saracen Mineral Holdings Limited (ASX: SAR).
Bank shares higher.
The big four banks are on course to finish the week on a positive note. All four banks are up over 1% at the time of writing. The best performer in the group at lunch is the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price with a gain of 1.35%.
Best and worst performers.
The best performer on the ASX 200 at lunch is the News Corp (ASX: NWS) share price with a gain of 3.5%. This follows reports that one of its shareholders, L1 Capital, believes there could be upside of 50% to its current share price. Going the other way is the Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) share price with a 2% decline. On Thursday a notice revealed that La Mancha Group had sold down its stake in the gold miner from 7.65% to 6.64%.
