ASX opens lower; markets bracing for upcoming RBA meeting
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More news: Australian shares opened lower in early trade, weighed down by miners for a second consecutive session as gold prices fell, while markets are also anticipating a rate hike from the RBA tomorrow.
The benchmark ASX 200 was down by 38.2 points, or 0.44%, to 8,578 at 10:32am AEDT. Six of the 11 sectorial indices opened in the red.
Energy (+1.47%) led the strongest performing sector at the open, lifted by Karoon Energy (+3.26%), Woodside Energy (+2.25%), Beach Energy (+1.29%) and Horizon Oil (+1.89%), after Donald Trump’s threat to strike Iran’s oil terminal renewed global oil supply concerns.
Reliance Worldwide (+4.10%) was among the best performing stocks across the ASX 200 after announcing further on-market share buyback of $120 million.
Elsewhere, mining (-2.59%) was the worst performing sector, dragged lower by Fortescue (-2.61%), Rio Tinto (-2.31%), Northern Star (-4.23%) and Mineral Resources (-5.01%).
IperionX (-12.16%), Regis Resources (-6.77%), Vault Minerals (-6.68%) and Deep Yellow (-6.65%) all slumped and were among the worst performing stocks at the open.
Australian shares set to open lower as economic uncertainty weighs on global markets
The news: Australian shares are set to open lower as US stocks slipped for a third consecutive week, with investors weighing the risk of a prolonged Middle East conflict on energy prices and economic stability.
Crude prices fluctuated before moving higher, despite Donald Trump temporarily lifting sanctions on Russian oil exports on Friday to ease supply concerns.
The numbers: Updated at 7:48am AEDT:
- ASX futures: down 61 points to 8,541.
- Wall Street: Dow Jones down 0.26%, S&P 500 down 0.61% and the Nasdaq down 0.31%.
- Europe: CAC 40 down 0.91%, DAX down 0.60% and FTSE 100 down 0.43%.
- Spot gold: down 1.12% to USD5,022 per ounce.
- Oil prices: Brent up 2.67% to USD103.14/bbl and US WTI up 3.11% to USD98.71/bbl.
- AUD: down 1.35% at 69.98 US cents.
- Bitcoin: up 0.77% to USD71,791.
The context: All three major US indices recorded weekly declines on Friday, each falling more than 1.2%. The S&P 500 fell 0.6%, the Dow Jones lost 119 points, and the Nasdaq dropped 0.9%.
The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed to shipping as Iran intensifies attacks along the key shipping route. Oil prices settled above USD100 a barrel, capping a volatile week that saw prices briefly peak at USD120 on Monday.
Despite softer economic data, the US Federal Reserve is expected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at its upcoming monetary policy. Rising oil prices are further fuelling inflation concerns, reducing the likelihood of a near-term rate cut.
In equities, tech shares weighed on the S&P 500. Shares in design software maker Adobe fell 7.6% after the company announced the departure of its CEO Shantanu Narayen, while Meta dropped 3.8% after delaying the release of its artificial intelligence model “Avocado” to May.
Locally, the Economics Legislation Committee is scheduled to table its findings on the Corporations Amendment 2025, which aims to bring licensing for crypto services under the Australian Financial Services Licence framework.
