Australian shares to open higher as SK Hynix debut lifts chip stocks
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The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open higher after Wall Street closed higher on Friday, as optimism surrounding SK Hynix boosted memory-chip makers ahead of the start of the second-quarter earnings season.
The numbers: Updated at 7:49am AEST:
- ASX futures: up 43 points to 8,814 points
- Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.29% on Friday, S&P 500 up 0.42%, Nasdaq up 0.29%
- Europe: FTSE 100 up 0.24% on Friday, CAC 40 up 0.15%, DAX down 0.20%
- Spot gold: down 0.06% to USD4,121 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent up 0.01% to USD76.00/barrel, US WTI up 1.18% to USD72.25/bbl
- AUD: down 0.17% at 69.45 US cents
- Bitcoin: up 0.14% to USD63,871.
The context: All three major US indices ended the week higher as the artificial intelligence trade regained momentum, led by SK Hynix, which closed 13% above its US listing price at USD168 ($241). The South Korean chipmaker raised more than USD26 billion on Thursday (ET) through the sale of American depositary receipts priced at USD149 each.
The second-quarter earnings season begins this week with reports from major US banks. LSEG data shows analysts expect S&P 500 earnings to rise 24% from a year earlier, with technology companies expected to account for much of the growth.
Elsewhere, geopolitical tensions escalated after US and Iranian forces exchanged missile and drone strikes. Reuters reported Tehran targeted US facilities across the Gulf overnight and again declared the Strait of Hormuz closed.
The latest exchange marked the largest round of attacks in more than a week and was intended to signal the US would hold Iran accountable for attacks on commercial shipping, the Wall Street Journal reported.
On the data front, OPEC is due to release its monthly oil market report with fresh forecasts later today.
