Investing.com - Australian shares are set to open lower on Wednesday, mirroring Wall Street's mixed performance following two underwhelming US government bond auctions.
The ASX 200 Futures indicate a decline of 1% at the open, setting the tone for a potentially volatile trading session ahead, with market participants awaiting the release of the monthly weighted mean consumer price index at 11.30 AEST.
The yield on the US 10-year bond rose to 4.545%, following a lackluster response to the US sale of $US70 billion in five-year notes at 4.553%, slightly above the pre-auction level of 4.540%. An earlier offering of $US69 billion in 2-year notes was also received tepidly.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6%, while the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ Composite ended the session in positive territory. Notably, chipmaker NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) saw its shares jump over 7%, propelling the Nasdaq above the 17,000 points mark for the first time.
Back home, Australian mining stocks could experience some movement following a 1.2% drop in iron ore futures. Oil prices, however, rebounded from last week’s selloff amid escalating tensions in the Middle East. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.7% to settle above $US79 a barrel.
In company news, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Ltd (ASX:FPH) is set to release earnings, while Macquarie Telecom Group Ltd (ASX:MAQ) will host an investor meeting. Shares of Nufarm Ltd (ASX:NUF) will trade ex-dividend.
Despite Wall Street's lukewarm trading session after returning from a three-day weekend, United States Cellular Corporation (NYSE:USM) shares rose 7.6% following news of T-Mobile's (NASDAQ:TMUS) planned acquisition of the company for $US4.4 billion. Video game retailer GameStop Corp (NYSE:GME) saw its shares surge by 18.8% after announcing it had raised $US933.4 million in cash through a stock sale.
However, health care stocks faced some of Wall Street's steepest losses with Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA), Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK), and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:VRTX) witnessing considerable drops.