Wall St gains on Friday will push the ASX higher today. ASX 200 futures are 0.5% higher to 8,365 points.
The ASX200 ended last week 68 points higher, up 0.84% at 8,283, driven by a strong performance on Wall Street and the positive momentum of major Australian banks, mirroring the success of their US counterparts during the latest reporting season.
Among the sectors, Financials gained 4.07%, leading the rally, followed by Health Care at 1.01%, Telecommunications at 0.54% and Industrials at 0.45%. However, Utilities fell 4.42%, Energy dropped 3.92%, Information Technology declined 3.54% and Consumer Staples lost 1.72%, weighing on the broader market.
On the individual stock front, the top performers included Lake Resources Ltd, soaring 62.50%, Regis Resources Ltd (ASX:RRL), up 22.69%, Adairs Ltd with an 18.59% rise, and City Chic Ltd, which gained 15.38%.
On the losing side, Webjet Ltd (ASX:WEB) tumbled 40.26%, Flight Centre (ASX:FLT) Travel Group Ltd fell 21.43%, DroneShield Ltd (ASX:DRO, OTC:DRSHF) declined 15.23% and Tyro Payments Ltd dropped 13.89%.
“This week, the main highlight on the calendar will be RBA Deputy Governor Hauser's speech at lunch on Monday," IG markets analyst Tony Sycamore said.
"The market will be watching closely for any additional hints that the RBA is moving closer to a dovish pivot following chief economist Hunter's less hawkish comments and RBA meeting minutes.
“The rates market starts the week pricing in 6bp of RBA rate cuts for December with the pricing of a first full 25bp RBA rate cut not until April.”
Wall St rises
US stocks ended the week on a positive note on Friday, buoyed by a strong performance in the technology sector following Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX)'s robust earnings report.
Over the week, the S&P 500 rose by 0.85% while the Dow Jones increased by 412 points, or 0.96%.
The Nasdaq 100, though trailing behind, managed a modest gain of 0.26%. Despite this, all three major indices recorded gains for the sixth consecutive week, marking their best streak since late 2023.
Netflix shares surged 11% on Friday, reaching a new record high of $763.89, following strong third-quarter earnings, revenue and subscriber growth. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) also gained 1.2%, closing at $235.00, driven by a sharp rise in iPhone sales in China.
Earnings season continues this week with key reports expected from Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO), Boeing (NYSE:BA) and American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL).
On the economic data front, the preliminary S&P Global US Composite PMI for October is projected to remain steady at 54. Meanwhile, the rates market is pricing in a 95% probability of a 25 basis point interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve in November, with a total of 44 basis points of cuts anticipated by year-end.
Continental European sharemarkets
Closed higher on Friday, driven by a 2% rise in the technology sector. Shares in computer chip equipment manufacturer ASML (AS:ASML) gained 1%, while chipmakers Soitec and BE Semiconductor Industries advanced 5.6% and 2.8%, respectively. The basic resources sector also rose by 1.4%, buoyed by strong copper prices.
- The FTSEurofirst 300 index, which tracks stocks across the continent, increased 0.2% and ended the week up 0.5%.
- In contrast, London’s FTSE 100 index dropped 0.3% on Friday but finished the week with a 1.3% gain, supported by expectations of a potential UK interest rate cut next month.
Currencies and commodities
Currencies
Currencies were mixed against the US dollar in European and US trading.
- The Euro rose from US$1.0834 to US$1.0869, settling near US$1.0865 at the US close.
- The Australian dollar declined from US$0.6719 to US$0.6697, ending close to US$0.6705.
- The Japanese yen strengthened, moving from JPY150.15 per US dollar to JPY149.36, and hovered around JPY149.50 by the US close.
Commodities
Global oil prices fell sharply on Friday, dropping over 7% for the week, as China's slowing economic growth and a mixed Middle East outlook weighed on markets.
- Brent crude dropped US$1.39, or 1.9%, to US$73.06 per barrel.
- US Nymex crude decreased by US$1.45, or 2.1%, to US$69.22 per barrel.
- For the week, Brent slid 7.6% and Nymex tumbled 8.4%, marking their largest weekly declines since early September.
Base metal prices climbed on Friday.
- Copper futures gained 1.4% amid new measures to boost liquidity in China's stock market.
- Aluminium futures surged 2.5%.
- Despite Friday's gains, copper dropped 2.4% and aluminium fell 0.1% over the week.
- Gold futures rose by US$22.50, or 0.8%, to a record US$2,730 per ounce, driven by heightened Middle East tensions, US election uncertainty, and expectations of a relaxed monetary policy. Spot gold was trading near US$2,720 at the US close, with bullion rising 2% for the week.
- Iron ore futures edged up by US1 cent to US$105.37 per tonne, with gains limited by ongoing weakness in China's economy and steel market. Iron ore fell 1% for the week.
What about small caps
The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) fell 1.28% on Friday to 3,187.80 but was 0.29% higher for the week.
It has been a steady start to the week for newsflow and you can read about the following and more throughout the day.