Investing.com - The Australian Stock Exchange is likely to open with a slight upswing, taking cues from New York's continued rally where the S&P 500 successfully breached the 5200-point threshold. This positive trajectory marks a recovery from April's precarious performance and a promising start to May.
The boost in the market was influenced by robust demand for the sale of 30-year US Treasuries, and despite an unexpected surge in jobless claims last week, optimism prevails.
The successful absorption of the new bond supply worth $US125 billion this week has brought relief in the US, resulting in a dip in Treasury yields. The two-year yields, which generally align with interest rate predictions, dropped by 3 basis points to 4.81%. Meanwhile, the 10-year benchmark also eased by 3 basis points to 4.46%.
The Australian dollar experienced a 0.6% rise to US66.18¢, propelled by a 13% surge in China's iron ore imports compared to a year ago and a weakening US dollar.
Gold prices saw an upward trend of over 1% following the US jobless claims report. This report indicated a potential slowing down of the labour market, fuelling expectations of a rate cut.
Investors are optimistic that the slowing US labour market might prompt the Federal Reserve to consider rate cuts. This expectation was further fuelled by Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey's positive remarks.
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) saw a rise following Bloomberg's report about the tech giant's plans to roll out some of its AI features this year using data centres powered by its in-house processors. This move is part of Apple's broader strategy to enhance its devices with AI capabilities.
Conversely, Airbnb Inc (NASDAQ:ABNB) took a nearly 7% hit after its second-quarter outlook failed to meet expectations.