The ASX is set to rise in early trading today, with futures pointing to a 0.4% or 31-point lift, potentially reversing the recent downward trend.
US markets managed gains despite slipping oil prices yesterday, led up by tech giants and consumer discretionary stocks.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) saw gains ranging between 1.8% and 6% while Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN), Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) declined 5.3%, 5% and 2.3%, respectively, representing a 3.4% slip in general energy stocks.
Despite that, a weakening in Treasury yields and weak job data pointing to further rate pauses pushed growth stocks higher, resulting in a 0.8% uptick for the S&P 500, 0.4% for the Dow and 1.4% for the Nasdaq.
European markets continued their slide for the third day as the energy sector experienced its worst result in almost three months, shedding 2.1% as oil prices dipped by about US$5 a barrel on news Russia may lift its diesel export ban and weaker-than expected US demand.
Retail stocks also hit a near four-month low with a 1.7% loss, overall causing a 0.1% dip in the FTSE 300 and a 0.8% decline in the UK FTSE100.
Commodities, currencies, and bonds
As stated above, oil slid overnight, shedding 5.6%. Brent crude dipped by US$5.11 to US$85.81 a barrel, and US Nymex crude fell US$5.01 to US$84.22 a barrel.
Base metal prices also weakened, with copper futures dropping 0.9% and aluminium sliding 2%.
The US dollar fell against the Euro, Aussie dollar and Japanese Yen during overnight trading:
- The Euro gained from US$1.0452 to US$1.0530
- The Australian dollar strengthened from US63.00 cents to US63.41 cents
- The Japanese Yen rose from 149.26 yen per US dollar to 148.74 yen.
Weak private payroll data drove US Treasury bonds lower, with 10-year bonds falling 7 points to .73%, and the US 2-year Treasury yield dipped 9 points to 5.05%.
What’s happening in small caps?
The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries closed at 2,629.80 points yesterday, down 0.75% for the day.
Making news this morning, which you can read more about throughout the day with Proactive, are: