Despite weak leads from equity markets around the world, ASX futures are pointing towards a slightly higher open for the Australian share market.
Asian and European markets all finished lower, while the Nasdaq was the only Wall Street index to post a gain. Investor sentiment around the world was weighed down by US President Donald Trump's failure to pass a law which would repeal and replace Obamacare – with even some in his own Republican Party opposing the bill. The question now becomes whether Trump will have the mandate to pass his sweeping tax reform and pro-growth agenda.
Overnight, gold prices hit a one-month high, iron ore prices fell towards US$80, and oil prices slipped due to doubts on whether the OPEC production cuts will extend beyond June.
MarketsWall Street finished mixed this morning: The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2% lower at 20,551. The S&P 500 lost 0.1% to 2,342 and the NASDAQ gained 0.2% to 5,840.
European markets closed lower overnight: London’s FTSE dropped 0.6 per cent, Paris fell 0.1 per cent, and Frankfurt was down 0.6%.
Asian markets closed lower as well: the Nikkei plummeted 1.4 per cent, the Hang Seng fell 0.7 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite was down 0.1 per cent.
The Australian share market finished lower yesterday. The S&P/ASX 200 Index lost 7 points to close at 5,747 points. This morning, on the futures market the SPI is up 16 points.
Company newsSouth32
(ASX:S32) has announced it will buy back US$500 million worth of its shares, which is 4.5% of its current market cap. The mining company experienced a surge in cash flow after commodity prices lifted in the past year. In 1H17, the company managed to turn around its US$1.75 billion loss into a US$620 million profit. Yesterday, South32 shares closed 1.84% lower at $2.67.
Ex-dividendsKip McGrath Education Centres
(ASX:KME) will pay 0.6 cents, unfranked.
SEEK Limited
(ASX:SEK) will pay 23 cents, fully franked.
CurrenciesThe Australian Dollar at 7:30AM was buying $US76.23 cents, 60.68 Pence Sterling, 84.33 Yen and 70.17 Euro cents.
Commodities Gold has gained $6 to $US1,258 an ounce.
Silver is up $0.38 to $18.13 an ounce.
Oil is down $0.18 to $US47.79 a barrel.
