( dpa ) - Australian stocks opened strongly Thursday, but profit-taking set in to limit the bounce evident in early trading.
The All Ordinaries index, which powered up 2.5 per cent at the opening bell, settled after the first hour of trading for a rise of 104 points, or 1.9 per cent, to 5,550 points.
Flattening sentiment was a trading halt called by Allco Finance Group Ltd on its shares, which lost 43 per cent of their value Wednesday.
Shares in the leverage buy-out specialist have given up 60 per cent of their value this month.
Confidence in Allco fell Wednesday after employees sold off some of their holdings to meet margin calls by lenders.