According to ASX futures, the Australian share market will open flat this morning.
The UK has delivered a letter to the European Council, to formally trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty – in order to begin the Brexit process.
This was a long-expected event which most investors seem to have shrugged off as, overnight, most major equity markets finished higher.
On Wall Street, it was a mixed performance as around half the share sectors finished in the red. But the sector with the most gains was Energy – on the back of oil prices which went up overnight, and weekly data from the US Energy Information Administration which showed a smaller than expected crude inventory build up.
US economic newsPending home sales rebounded sharply in February – up by 5.5%. This is its highest level in nearly a year and the second-highest level in over a decade.
MarketsWall Street finished mixed this morning: The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2% to 20,659. The S&P 500 gained 0.1% to 2,361 and the NASDAQ was up 0.4% to 5,898.
European markets closed higher overnight: London’s FTSE gained 0.4 per cent, Paris lifted almost 0.5 per cent, and Frankfurt was up 0.4%.
Asian markets finished mixed: the Nikkei rose 0.1 per cent, the Hang Seng was up 0.2 per cent, and the Shanghai Composite was down 0.4 per cent.
Yesterday, the Australian share market rally continued – with The S&P/ASX 200 Index closing 52 points (or 0.8%) higher at 5,874, which is the new record high for this year so far.
This morning, on the futures market the SPI is flat, up just 5 points.
Company newsSolomon Lew’s retail group, Premier Investments Ltd
(ASX:PMV), has confirmed recent media speculation – that it was indeed the mystery buyer that purchased a 10.8% stake in department store group, Myer Holdings
(ASX:MYR) on Monday. This led to Myer’s share price surging 18% in one day. However, Premier says it currently has no plans to make a takeover offer. Yesterday, shares in Premier Investments closed 1% higher at $14.18, and Myer closed 0.42% lower at $1.19.
CurrenciesThe Australian Dollar at 7:30AM was buying $US76.69 cents, 61.67 Pence Sterling, 85.15 Yen and 71.25 Euro cents.
CommoditiesGold has gained $1.90 to $US1,256 an ounce.
Silver is steady $18.25 an ounce.
Oil has gained $1.06 to $US49.50 a barrel.
Ex-dividends
