Australian shares set for rate cut boost, Wall Street slips
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The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open higher amid optimism after the Reserve Bank’s second rate cut this year, despite Wall Street losing ground overnight.
The numbers: Updated at 7.25am AEDT:
- ASX futures: up 52 points or 0.62% at 8,421 points
- Wall Street: Dow Jones down 0.27%, S&P 500 down 0.39%, Nasdaq down 0.38%
- Europe: FTSE 100 up 0.94%, CAC 40 up 0.75%, DAX up 0.42%
- Spot gold: up 0.01% at USD3,290.21 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent up 0.11% to USD65.61/bbl, US WTI down 0.21% to USD62.56/bbl
- AUD: down 0.06% at 64.20 US cents
- Bitcoin: up 0.79% to USD106,441.60.
The context: All three major US stock indices finished lower, under pressure from rising Treasury yields, with the US sovereign debt profile in focus as President Donald Trump seeks to persuade lawmakers to pass a sweeping tax-cut bill that will add to government debt. Investors are also eyeing commentary on the monetary policy outlook from several Federal Reserve officials this week. Eight out of 11 of the S&P 500's sectors fell, led by losses in energy, communication services, and consumer discretionary stocks.
What to watch: RBA chart pack of graphs on the Australian economy and financial markets; earnings from James Hardie, Nufarm and Webjet, among others.
