Australian share to open higher; Wall Street lifts ahead of data, earnings

The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to follow the overseas lead after all three main US indices closed in positive territory as investors await economic data and a rush of corporate earnings.

The numbers: Updated at 7:25am AEDT:

• ASX futures: up 38 points or 0.46% at 8,288 points
• Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.65%, S&P 500 up 0.28%, Nasdaq up 0.29%
• Europe: FTSE 100 up 0.45%, CAC 40 up 0.79%, DAX up 0.35%
• Spot gold: down 0.18% to USD2,742.52 per ounce
• Oil prices: Brent down 5.34% to USD71.99/barrel, US WTI down 5.31% to USD67.97/bbl
• AUD: down 0.33% at 65.83 US cents
• Bitcoin: up 2.23% to USD69,484.72.

The context: US investors are focused on corporate results, including the bulk of the megacap technology stocks such as Alphabet, Meta and Apple that have driven Wall Street to all-time highs. US economic data due this week, such as the personal consumption expenditure price index, will also be crucial for assessing the Federal Reserve policy. Meanwhile, sentiment improved after energy supplies were not disrupted by weekend developments in the Middle East.

What to Watch: Annual general meetings for Ansell, CSL, Credit Corp, Kelsian Group and Vicinity Centres among others.