Investing.com - The Australian Stock Exchange is predicted to experience a downturn at Friday's open, mirroring the losses in New York, due to the latest US inflation data that has reignited speculation that the Federal Reserve could further increase interest rates.
Last month, Core CPI lifted 0.3%, while headline prices saw a 0.4% rise. Both metrics were projected to increase by 0.3%.
ASX 200 Futures indicated a drop of 49.5 points or 0.7% as of 7:50am AEDT.
In tech news, US-listed company Atlassian Corp (NASDAQ:TEAM) announced its biggest acquisition yet. The company is set to purchase video-messaging startup Loom for $US975 million, signaling a strong belief in the future of remote professional collaboration and instruction. The acquisition, which is expected to be finalized by the end of March 2024, will be funded mostly by cash, with the remainder in stock awards.
The Australian dollar witnessed a 1.6% drop overnight, while the US Dollar Index rose by 0.7%. Bitcoin also experienced a marginal decrease of 0.1%.
The yield on the US 10-year note saw a significant increase of 14 basis points to reach 4.70%.
In other news, the United Nations has issued a warning of a potential 'disaster' in Gaza as Israel intensifies its airstrikes against Hamas. Meanwhile, the EU's plans to probe Chinese steelmakers over subsidies have been criticized by China, which claims such investigations will disrupt global supply chains and defy international trade norms.
Several financial institutions and experts have shared their perspectives on the US CPI data. While some express caution and predict a potential rate hike by the end of the year, others remain confident in the downward trend in inflation and anticipate core inflation to fall substantially in the first half of next year.
In the commodities sector, oil gains were trimmed following a 10.2 million barrel rise in US crude stockpiles, the largest increase since February. This boost provides a cushion against the escalating geopolitical risks in Israel and Gaza.