The ASX200 is tipped to lift almost half a per cent this morning, in the wake of a better session on Wall Street after the US Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell indicated interest rate cuts would begin later this year.
He was presenting to Congress in his regular Monetary Policy Report.
The Nasdaq gained 0.6 per cent, the S&P 500 half a per cent and the Dow Jones 0.2 per cent.
The big news overnight was Nikki Haley’s withdrawal from the US Presidential race, which means Donald Trump will be the Republican nominee and there will be a sequel Trump vs Biden showdown.
Back home, monthly household spending data is due out from the Australian Bureau of Statistics this morning, along with lending data and international goods trade figures.
Small caps to watch will include Brightstar Resources (ASX:BTR), which has completed its first gold pour from the Menzies Gold Project. The bar of gold was processed at Genesis Minerals’ (ASX:GMD) Gwalia processing plant near Leonora in Western Australia. And, Heavy Minerals (ASX:HVY) has secured a 3-year deal to sell at least 15,000 tonnes of garnet a year to an abrasive blasting company.
Bitcoin has continued its climb to just shy of A$101,245.
One Aussie dollar is buying US65 cents.
Gold has again surged to a new record – it’s up more than 5.5 per cent for the week so far. It’s now edging very close to US$2150 an ounce.
Oil has lifted on demand expectations: Crude is up nearly 1.3 per cent to above $79 a barrel.
Iron ore has been trading around US$116 a tonne and natural gas has shed 1.6 per cent to $1.92.