Australian shares to rise after Fed sparks Wall Street rally
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to lift in early trade, tracking sharp gains on Wall Street after the US Federal Reserve kept rates on hold and reinforced expectations for rate cuts this year.
The numbers: The Dow Jones index closed 1.02% higher, while the broader S&P 500 gained 0.89% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.25%. In the local market, ASX 200 futures were up 47 points or 0.61% at 7,744 points at 7:00am AEDT on Thursday.
The context: US stocks rose after the Fed held rates in the current 5.25% to 5.5% range and indicated rates could be cut by three-quarters of a percentage point by the end of 2024. Fed chair Jerome Powell said in a press conference that despite recent inflation data coming in hotter than expected, inflation is moving down gradually, although the path has been bumpy.
As a result, the probability of a quarter-point cut in June jumped to 68.3% from 55.6% the previous day, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
In the local market, investors will be focused on February jobs data due for release at 11:30am AEDT, with the unemployment rate expected to hold steady at 4.1%.
The source: Reuters
