The ASX200 is likely to fall in early trading today, with futures down 0.5% or 34 points near 8:30am this morning.
US inflation data came in hotter-than-expected overnight. Coupled with signs of a strengthening labour market, investors were forced to reevaluate hopes that the Fed would begin interest rate cuts anytime soon.
Interestingly, the S&P500 briefly set a new high during the US session, surpassing its January 2022 high of 4,796.56 points before momentum shifted later in the day to erase the early gains.
Overall, the US markets were mostly unchanged overnight, with a fall in US bond yields supporting the market through its inflation woes.
Shares in Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) continued to slide today, dipping a further 2.9% as the EV manufacturer flagged plans to increase wages across its US factories – perhaps in response to the United Auto Workers Union’s agitation for better wages and conditions at other major car manufacturers in the US.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) overtook Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) as the world's most valuable stock, gaining 0.5% as Apple shed 0.3%.
In the entertainment sector, Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery took solid hits to their share prices, dropping 5.5% and 3.9% respectively after they were downgraded by financial services firm Redburn Atlantic.
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX), on the other hand, gained 2.9% on news its new ad-supported tier gained more than 23 million active users per month globally.
All in all, the US markets were mostly unchanged overnight. The Dow Jones index rose by 15 points or less than 0.1%, the S&P 500 index slipped 0.1% and the Nasdaq index gained just 0.5 points or less than 0.1%.
Euro markets once again ended lower in trading overnight, with rate-sensitive banks and real estate stocks shedding 1.9% and 1.3% respectively on US CPI data, which dashed rate cut hopes.
The FTSE 300 index lost 0.8% and the FTSE 100 index shed 1%.
Commodities and currencies
The US dollar strengthened against major currencies in overnight trading.
The Euro declined from US$1.0990 to US$1.0929, settling around US$1.0970 at the close in the US.
The Aussie fell from 67.23 US cents to 66.47 US cents, and was about 66.85 US cents at the US close.
The Japanese Yen also slipped, moving from 145.30 yen per US dollar to JPY146.35, and stabilising around JPY145.45 at close.
Global oil prices also continued their recent rise, gaining 1% after Iran seized an oil tanker off the Oman Coast, heightening concerns over an escalating conflict in the Middle East.
Brent rose 61 US cents or 0.8%, reaching US$77.41 a barrel while US Nymex gained 65 US cents or 0.9%, reaching $72.02 a barrel.
Base metal prices remained relatively stable on Thursday. Copper futures experienced a minor 0.1% decrease, while aluminium futures saw a marginal 0.1% increase.
The gold futures price went the other way, falling by US$8.60 or 0.4% to land at US$2,019.20 an ounce. Spot gold was trading around US$2,028 an ounce at the US close.
Iron ore futures benefited from the latest Chinese property market support, gaining 69 US cents or 0.5% to reach US$138.85 a tonne.
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