Australian shares to open lower amid uncertainty over US-Iran peace deal
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The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open lower as global markets edged down on Friday while investors assess ongoing US-Iran peace negotiations over the weekend.
The numbers: Updated at 8:00am AEST:
- ASX futures: down 16 points to 8,812 points
- Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.14% on Thursday, S&P 500 up 1.08%, Nasdaq up 1.91%
- Europe: FTSE 100 down 0.48%, CAC 40 up 0.55%, DAX down 0.16%
- Spot gold: up 0.10% to USD4,155 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent up 1.16% to USD80.54/barrel, US WTI up 1.41% to USD78.42/bbl
- AUD: down 0.05% at 70.00 US cents
- Bitcoin: down 0.84% to USD63,711.
The context: With US cash markets closed for the Juneteenth holiday on Friday, futures on the S&P 500 slipped after the benchmark recorded its strongest weekly gain since late May. Europe’s Stoxx 600 fell 0.2%, while Asian equities retreated 0.3% from record highs. Markets in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan were closed.
Oil prices eased around USD80 ($114) a barrel after a ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah took effect on Friday following months of escalating conflict. However, tensions remained high after Israeli strikes killed at least 20 people in Lebanon on Saturday, according to Lebanon’s state news agency NNA.
Negotiations between the US and Iran in Switzerland remained ongoing despite reports from Iranian media that delegates had left the venue, according to Bloomberg. Senior representatives from the US, Iran, Qatar and Pakistan met at the Swiss resort of Bürgenstock, with Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi among those attending.
While Vance described talks on Lebanon as “great progress”, Trump warned the US would respond “very hard again” if Iran failed to restrain Hezbollah. Talks were further strained after Iran claimed it has once again closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to Israel’s attacks in Lebanon, although US Central Command disputed that the waterway had been shut.
Elsewhere, UK government bonds led gains across European bond markets after Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham won a parliamentary seat, handing him a pathway to challenge Prime Minister Keir Starmer for his job. There are multiple reports from London that Starmer is expected to resign. The sterling outperformed most major currencies, while the US dollar held near its highest level since March.
Locally, Anthony Albanese is due to convene national cabinet to discuss the fuel excise cut with state and territory leaders today.
