The Australian share market was treading water around midday following a public holiday closure for the US markets, although investors have built an appetite for shares in a popular Mexican restaurant chain.
At noon AEDT on Thursday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 had slipped 7.9 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 7,761.8, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 7 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 8,003.5.
It was a very quiet night for markets, according to NAB economists, with US equity and bond markets closed on Wednesday for the Juneteenth public holiday.
Mexican-themed restaurant chain Guzman y Gomez made a strong debut on the ASX at noon, with its shares surging more than 30 per cent from their $22 issue price in the first few minutes of trading.
The $335.1 million float – upsized from an initial public offering of $242.5 million – is the ASX’s biggest in three years, with the surging share price giving the 210-restaurant chain a market capitalisation of more than $3 billion.
At 12.37pm, GYG shares were changing hands for $30, up 36.7 per cent from the IPO price.
Elsewhere, the miners were a mixed bag, with index-heavy BHP losing 0.3 per cent and Rio Tinto climbing 0.5 per cent.
Uranium miners lost gains from Wednesday after the coalition government released its proposed nuclear policy, with Deep Yellow leading the fall at 2.7 per cent.
Coalminers appeared to dig their way out of the losses seen following the announcement, with Whitehaven rising 2.3 per cent and Yancoal up 1.2 per cent.
Healthcare and tech providers saw shades of red, with minimal gains across the sectors.
The four big banks appeared relatively flat at noon, with CBA gaining 0.4 per cent and Westpac up 0.1 per cent, while ANZ and NAB slipped 0.1 per cent.
Pharmaceutical company Botanix stood still on the ASX as it announced its US approval for a topical gel designed to treat excessive underarm sweating.
The US Food and Drug Administration approved the prescription of Sofdra as a medicine used to treat primary axillary hyperhidrosis in adults and children aged nine years and above.
One Australian dollar was purchasing 66.71 US cents at midday, slightly lower than 66.72 US cents at Wednesday’s ASX close.