Join our daily newsletter At The Bell to receive exclusive market insights
ASX today – The RBA is almost guaranteed to ‘pause’ rates when it meets on Tuesday, holding at 3.6% heading into Christmas, but the looming chance of a pre-emptive hike has traders skittish heading into Week 50.
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 downturn heading into open – futures have us 20 points down, -0.3% lower – tracks those sentiments exactly, and should roll on to close.
Even a ‘hold’ may not save us from a red week, however: Oz bond markets are fairly confident there’ll be a pause, but more and more is pointing towards a February rate cut, and that may trim any late Santa Rally™️ hopes.
It’s all in direct opposition to Wall Street, where investors are now pricing in more easing from the Federal Reserve before the holidays; an upcoming test to see if our U.S. big brother’s booms can overcome any trend.
Over there, markets were last as much as +0.3% higher, with leading bourse the S&P 500 ticking up +0.2%. The FTSE and Nikkei are both down, though.
Now, let’s take a look at Aussie company news as we get into the week.
ASX stocks to watch
First up, Webjet Group (ASX:WEB) brass has declared they want to get a sale through with BGH Capital and Helloworld by Chrissy. The $350 million approach has been simmering since Helloworld knocked in November.
Elsewhere, HotCopper forums have been abuzz about DroneShield’s (ASX:DRO) recent recovery. The developer’s down -40% this last month after Vornik’s shock stock sales, but retail investors have leapt in to ‘buy the dip.’
DigiCo Infrastructure (ASX:DGT) has brought in Michael Juniper to expand building plans. He’ll also helm HMC Capital (ASX:HMC) operations.
In mining, Nordic Resources (ASX:NNL) has brought in further mineralisation expansions at the Kopsa gold-copper deposit in Finland. The explorer will keep drills firing until its booking ends in late December.
Copper stocks remain a watch as the metal holds ATHs, too. On that note, let’s have a look at commodities and what cash is doing.
Buck and ore
Now – in forex, the Oz dollar buys 66.3 U.S. cents.
Looking at commodities, all in the greenback,
Iron Ore has dropped as much as -1.3%, to $103 a tonne in Singapore,
Brent Crude gained +0.8%, to $63.75/bbl,
Gold is at $4,214 an ounce, and,
US natgas futures are up +4.5%, to $5.28 per gigajoule.
That’s HotCopper’s 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.
