Australian shares look set to open lower today following a negative session on Wall Street. The Dow Jones fell by 193 points with the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 following suit.
The declines were fuelled by investor concerns of higher inflation which would lead to higher interest rates. Home depot was among the worst performers falling 1.9 per cent after reporting lower than expected sales.
The US ten year treasury yield hit 3.09 per cent, its highest read since 2011 which added to the pressure on markets. Global oil prices rose slightly amid investor concerns about fresh US sanctions on Iran. Iron ore fell by just over 1 per cent and gold is also lower.
US economic newsThe US Commerce Department reported retail sales increased 0.3 percent in April, which was in line with analyst expectations but down from a 0.8 percent gain in March.
In local Economic news
Local Economic newsToday all eyes will be on the wage price index for the March quarter. Wages have risen modestly over the last few years and are tipped to increase by 0.6 per cent today.
MarketsWall Street closed lower yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.8 per cent to close at 24,706, the S&P 500 closed 0.7 per cent lower at 2,711 and the NASDAQ lost 0.8 per cent to close at 7352.
European markets closed mixed yesterday: London’s FTSE ended 0.2 per cent higher, Paris rose 0.2 per cent and Frankfurt fell 0.1 per cent.
Asian markets closed mixed yesterday: Tokyo’s Nikkei closed 0.2% lower, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.2 per cent, and China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.6 per cent.
The ASX futures are pointing to a 7pts loss. Yesterday, the Australian share market closed lower with the S&P/ASX 200 Index closing 37 points lower to 6098.
Company newsInternational litigation funder IMF Bentham
(ASX:IMF) has announced the settlement of a case funded in Australia by the RoW funds concerning a commercial dispute. IMF’s anticipates settlement will conclude in the first half of 2019. IMF is one of the leading global litigation funders with its headquarters in Australia and offices around the world. Shares in IMF Bentham
(ASX:IMF) closed 2.94 per cent higher at $2.80 yesterday.
To ex-dividends
Autosports Grp Ltd. (ASX: ASG) is paying 4.2 cents fully franked and Regional Express is paying 4 cents also fully franked.
Currencies One Australian Dollar at 7:40AM was buying US74.72 cents, 55.33 Pence Sterling, 82.43 Yen and 63.12 Euro cents.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a 0.6 per cent drop.
Gold has dropped $28 to $US1290 an ounce.
Silver has lost 38c to $US16.27 an ounce.
Oil has gained 6c to $US71.05 a barrel.
CryptocurrenciesThe three most traded cryptocurrencies are trading lower: Bitcoin has lost 2.9 per cent to US$8540, Ethereum has fallen 2.9 per cent to US$744 and EOS has dropped 8.2 per cent to US$13.15.
