Australian shares to start higher despite weaker Wall Street

The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to start slightly higher despite a retreat on Wall Street on the back of stubbornly strong US inflation data.

The numbers: Updated at 7:25am AEDT:

• ASX futures: up 13 points or 0.15% at 8,451 points
• Wall Street: Dow Jones down 0.28%, S&P 500 down 0.34%, Nasdaq down 0.56%
• Europe: FTSE 100 up 0.20%, CAC 40 down 0.72%, DAX down 0.18%
• Spot gold: up 0.20% to USD2,638.37 per ounce
• Oil prices: Brent up 0.03% to USD72.83/barrel, US WTI down 0.10% to USD68.70/bbl
• AUD: up 0.33% at 64.96 US cents
• Bitcoin: up 5.71% to USD97,160.22

The context: The main US indices lost ground a day ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday after data showed consumer spending increased solidly in October but progress on lowering inflation appeared to have stalled. It led to a slump in technology stocks as investors worried the US Federal Reserve may be cautious about rate cuts. The Fed is expected to lower borrowing costs by 25 basis points in December but the market anticipates the central bank could leave rates unchanged at its January and March meetings.

What to Watch: RBA governor Michele Bullock is scheduled to speak at the annual CEDA dinner in Sydney, and annual general meetings for Star Entertainment, Sayona Mining, Strike Energy and Westgold Resources among others.