Australian shares set to lift after Wall Street gains
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The news: The Australian sharemarket is set for a strong start as local investors take cues from solid overnight gains on Wall Street on the back of rate cut hopes.
The numbers: The Dow Jones index edged 0.06% lower, but the broader S&P 500 gained 0.51% to hit a fresh record high and the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.88% to also close at a fresh record. In the local market, ASX 200 futures were up 73 points or 0.94% to 7,802 points at 7:00am AEST on Thursday.
The context: The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose during a shortened trading session ahead of the Fourth of July holiday, after fresh data pointed to a softening US economy, raising hopes the Federal Reserve could cut interest rates in September.
Both the ADP Employment report and weekly jobless claims data pointed to easing labour market conditions ahead of Friday's closely watched non-farm payrolls report. Traders are hoping signs of weakness in the labour market will encourage the Fed to cut interest rates.
That sentiment was bolstered by weaker-than-expected services data, while factory orders unexpectedly slumped too, prompting investors to boost bets for a September rate cut to over 70%.
The source: Reuters
