Hiring intentions reach strongest levels in 18 months; Lynas Corporation halts trading: Midday Roundup

A quarter of all employers are looking to increase their headcount with hiring intentions at their strongest level in 18 months, according to research released today by Hudson.

According to Business Spectator, the survey of more than 4000 employers showed a further 65% of employers are looking to keep their headcount steady, with just 11% indicating they intend to shed staff.

The trend is strongest in the legal profession, with more than half of employers looking to increase their headcount. In terms of states, employers in Queensland and WA the most keen to hire new staff.

“Queensland, in particular, has the highest expected increase in headcount for the coming quarter and that’s not been underpinned by coal or oil and gas. It’s across a range of sectors,” Hudson executive general manager Dean Davidson said.

Lynas Corporation halts trading

Rare earths miner Lynas Corporation has entered a trading halt this morning on the Australian Securities Exchange as it intends to reveal details of a new funding arrangement.

Shares in Lynas closed at 11.5 cents on Tuesday, with the company telling the ASX it expects the trading halt to remain in place until Friday.

Fairfax reports the move follows the breakdown in funding talks with two Japanese firms over a US$225 million (A$254 million) loan, leaving the miner faced with the challenge of making a significant repayment itself.

Shares down on open

CMC Markets chief market analyst Ric Spooner says traders are likely to follow international markets lower in early trade due to geopolitical risks in the Middle East.

“While the US bombing of Islamic State forces has been expected, it comes at a time when markets have largely removed geopolitical risk premium from valuations. This is evidenced by the ongoing decline in the oil and gold markets,” Spooner says.

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark was down 44.9 points, or 0.8%, to 5370.8 points at 12.12 PM AEST. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones closed down 116.81 points, or 0.68%, to 17055.9 points.