ASX Market Open: Heading towards red as Australia’s inflation tops 1Y high | Sep 25

Australian shares are heading even deeper into the red on Thursday, according to this morning’s ASX 200 futures, after yesterday’s CPI print confirmed Oz’s overheating inflation hit a calendar high last month.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

The consumer price data – another 0.3% higher than in July – suggests the Reserve Bank board will avoid any policy easing the next time they meet.

While it’s not the most surprising print, it did shock the markets a little heading into Wednesday’s close, and now that’s carrying over today.

Not helping Oz futures is the fact the U.S. is having a similar downswing; Wall Street investors are consolidating after back-to-back-to-back records, with the S&P, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq all down around -0.3%.

There’s a bit more economic data rolling out today, too, which may add to the heap: Job vacancies and wealth data are both due a little later.

(Also, in an update, Jonathon Davidson and I spoke about Trump dodging Albo on the latest HotCopper Wire release yesterday. Very happy to announce that Albo has since snagged the U.S. President for a selfie in New York.)

And, as always, there’s company news aplenty on the wire. Here’s the latest there.

ASX stocks to watch

Macquarie (ASX:MGQ) has agreed to pay Shield investors as much as $321M after making a deal with Oz’s corporate regulator. Macquarie’s Shield Master Trust was deemed to have “failed” and left thousands without super.

Elsewhere, Trigg Minerals (ASX:TMG) is in headlines again in Week 39; the explorer is spruiking a “fast-tracked” pathway to development at its Antimony Canyon project in Utah after defining exploration targets.

Morella Corporation (ASX:1MC) has caught eyes on HotCopper forums after pivoting into titanium at its Dixon Well Project after positive rock chip assays.

And, many will be watching lithium again today – always a red-hot topic on the forum threads – after the Trump administration said it was looking to buy into Lithium Americas Corp. Darlings in that sector like Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) and Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) jumped yesterday.

Buck and ore

Now – in forex, the Aussie dollar is buying 65.8 U.S. cents.

Looking at commodities, all in the greenback,

Iron Ore has clawed back slightly; it’s selling at $106.15 a tonne in Singapore,

Brent Crude is up +2.2% at $69.06/bbl,

Gold has held its strong highs, today selling at $3,748 an ounce, and,

US natgas futures are up +0.7%, to $2.87 per gigajoule.

That’s HotCopper’s ASX Market Open, I’m Isaac McIntyre – good luck, happy trading.

Join the discussion. See what’s trending right now on Australia’s largest stock forum and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.