ASX to edge higher after US inflation shakes Wall Street

The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open slightly higher after a hotter-than-expected US inflation reading weighed on Wall Street, adding to worries the Federal Reserve will not cut interest rates anytime soon.

The numbers: Updated at 7:25am AEDT:

• ASX futures: up 10 points or 0.12% at 8,492 points
• Wall Street: Dow Jones down 0.57%, S&P 500 down 0.20%, Nasdaq up 0.10%.
• Europe: FTSE 100 up 0.34%, CAC 40 up 0.17%, DAX up 0.50%
• Spot gold: up 0.07% to USD2,899.86 per ounce
• Oil prices: Brent down 2.45% to USD75.11/ barrel, US WTI down 2.70% to USD71.34/bbl
• AUD: down 0.10% at 62.88 US cents
• Bitcoin: up 1.50% to USD97,300.83.

The context: US stocks traded lower after Labor Department data showed consumer prices rose 0.5% last month, the most in nearly a year and a half. In testimony before the US Congress, Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the US central bank was in no rush to cut rates again. Interest rate futures now suggest traders see about a 70% chance the Fed will reduce rates one more time by the end of 2025. Meanwhile, oil prices tumbled after US President Donald Trump said he spoke with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and that the two agreed to begin negotiations to end Russia’s war against Ukraine.

What to watch: Half-year results from IAG, Origin Energy, Treasury Wine Estates, Temple & Webster, Domain, Orora, South32 and ASX, among others.