Key Points:
- The RBA opted to leave the overnight cash rate unchanged at 3.00% at the February board meeting and similarly elected to keep the rate at 3.00% in March.
- Three month bank bill future prices gained 4 basis points (bp) in February, indicating improved market sentiment while also signalling a lower probability of an interest rate cut in the next three months.
- The ten year bond rate corrected in February following a dramatic rise in January to end the month 10 bp lower.
- Australian shares continued to post strong returns, with the All Ordinaries Price Index gaining 4.48% and the S&P/ASX 200 Price Index gaining 4.62%.
- Australian listed property gained 2.56% as measured by the ASX 300 A-REITS Price Index.
- International Shares posted modest gains in February, with most major regional markets reporting gains. In particular, the TOPIX (Japan) rallied 3.77% while the Dow Jones Industrials (US) and the FTSE 100 (UK) posted moderate gains of 1.40% and 1.34% respectively.
- The Hang Seng Price Index (Hong Kong) performed poorly in absolute and relative terms, declining by 2.99% during February.
- Commodities prices fell in February. Oil was the weakest performer with the price of West Texas Crude Oil ($US) declining by 5.58%. The USD Gold price also retreated, ending the month 5.05% lower.
- The Australian Dollar saw varied results in February, declining against the US Dollar (down 1.90%) and the Japanese Yen (down 0.78%) while posting gains against the British Pound (2.56% higher) and the Euro (1.86% higher).
- Volatility increased by 1.23%, as measured by the VIX Index, however the Index is still less volatile than at this time last year.
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Source: Zenith Investment Partners
27th-March-2013 | 
