Australian shares seen steady after trade hopes boost Wall Street
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The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open slightly higher following gains on Wall Street, after the US and Britain hammered out a new trade agreement and US President Donald Trump signalled optimism about trade talks with China.
The numbers: Updated at 7.25am AEDT:
- ASX futures: up 3 points or 0.04% at 8,216 points
- Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.62%, S&P 500 up 0.58%, Nasdaq up 1.07%
- Europe: FTSE 100 up 0.32%, CAC 40 up 0.89%, DAX up 1.02%
- Spot gold: up 0.01% at USD3,305.83 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent up 3.65% to USD63.35/bbl, US WTI up 3.17% to USD59.91/bbl
- AUD: up 0.01% at 64.01 US cents
- Bitcoin: up 6.46% to USD103,337.10.
The context: All three major US stock indices finished higher after the UK agreed to lower its tariffs and provide greater access to US goods as part of the deal. Trump also said he expects substantive negotiations between the US and Beijing on the trade front this weekend. Meanwhile, weekly initial jobless claims in the US fell more than expected last week, suggesting the labour market remains on stable footing, but a separate report showed worker productivity dropped in the first quarter for the first time in nearly three years.
What to watch: Full-year results from Macquarie and quarterly results from REA, among others.
