ASX opens higher, rebounding from a $90b wipeout
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More news: Australian shares opened higher, rebounding from a $90 billion paper value wipeout on Monday as Donald Trump suggested the US-Israeli war with Iran could be nearing an end.
The benchmark ASX 200 was up by 149.7 points, or 1.74%, to 8,748 at 10:34am AEDT, returning $47 billion in value to the exchange after the biggest one-day fall in a year. Ten of the 11 sectoral indices opened in the green.
Tech (+2.98%) was the strongest performing sector at the open, supported by a lift in WiseTech (+3.77%), Technology One (+3.91%), NextDC (+3.20%) and Life360 (+8.38%).
Telix Pharmaceuticals (+9.31%) surged at the open after flagging positive results from its prostate cancer trial.
Paladin Energy (+8.12%), Nine Entertainment (+5.89%), Nexgen Energy (+5.72%) and Resolute Mining (+5.61%) were also among the top performers in early trading.
Energy (-2.99%) was the only sector that opened in the red, weighed lower by Woodside Energy (-3.06%), Yancoal (-6.42%), New Hope (-4.83%) and Karoon Energy (-7%) as oil prices continue to ease.
Pantoro Gold (-17.38) slumped and was the worst performing stock at the open after cutting its full-year production guidance on Monday.
Australian shares set to rally as Trump signals Iran war nearing end
The news: Australian shares are set to rally at the open after Wall Street’s three main indices rebounded on Monday, staging a late-session rebound after Donald Trump suggested the US-Israeli war with Iran could be nearing an end.
The numbers: Updated at 7:45am AEDT:
- ASX futures: up 184 points to 8,751.
- Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.50%, S&P 500 up 0.53% and the Nasdaq up 1.38%.
- Europe: CAC 40 down 0.98%, DAX down 0.77% and FTSE 100 down 0.34%.
- Spot gold: down 0.39% to USD5,138 per ounce.
- Oil prices: Brent down 5.53% to USD87.62/bbl and US WTI down 7.72% to USD83.68/bbl.
- AUD: up 0.67% at 70.75 US cents.
- Bitcoin: up 4.40% to USD68,850.
The context: All three major US indices initially opened the session lower on Monday, before rallying into the close after CBS News reported that Donald Trump said the US-Israeli war with Iran was “very far ahead of schedule” and “very complete, pretty much.” The Nasdaq composite led gains, rising 1.4%, while the Dow Jones climbed 239 points after earlier falling almost 900 points.
Brent crude eased below USD90 a barrel after surging overnight to its highest intraday level since mid-2022. US crude dropped below USD85 a barrel, after surging above USD119 earlier.
Moreover, G7 finance ministers met virtually on Monday and pledged to take “necessary measures” on oil, though stopped short of announcing an immediate release from strategic reserves. The comments followed production cuts by Gulf oil producers amid shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
The uncertainty over the duration of the Middle East conflict coupled with Friday’s weaker-than-expected employment report, had increased the risk of economic stagflation, according to analysts cited by Reuters. Financial markets still expect the Federal Reserve to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged through the first half of the year.
Locally, CommBank will release its wage and labour insights report for February today, while the Westpac-Melbourne Institute is set to release its March consumer sentiment data at 10:30am AEDT.
