Australian shares are poised to open higher this morning as US stocks fell for a third consecutive day for the first time this year as investors cooled over geopolitical risks. All three US major benchmarks were lower heading into the close.
Local economic news We can expect to see results from AiG on the performance of manufacturing February, and Core Logic will release figures for dwelling prices February.
Markets Wall Street closed mixed lower: The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 per cent to close at 25,916, the S&P 500 shed 0.3 per cent to close at 2,784 and the NASDAQ was down 0.3 per cent to close at 7533.
European markets closed mixed: London’s FTSE fell 0.5 per cent, Paris added 0.3 per cent and Frankfurt closed 0.3 per cent higher.
Asian markets closed lower, Tokyo’s Nikkei closed 0.8 per cent lower,Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.4 per cent and China’s Shanghai Composite also fell 0.4 per cent.
Taking all of this into equation, the ASX futures are up 6 points. Yesterday the Australian share market closed 0.3 per cent higher or 19 points at 6169.
Company newsDoray Minerals
(ASX:DRM) announced that the decision to divest the Andy Well and Gnaweeda Gold Projects to Westgold Resources
(ASX:WGX) has been terminated. This was due to the conditions not being satisfied or waived by the agreed end date. As previously announced, Doray is proposing to undertake a merger with Silver Lake Resources Limited
(ASX:SLR) by way of a share scheme of arrangement and an option scheme of arrangement. The Doray Board of Directors continues to unanimously recommend that Doray shareholders and optionholders vote in favour of the Schemes, subject to no superior proposal emerging. Shares in Westgold Resources
(ASX:WGX) closed 1.68 per cent higher at $1.21 yesterday.
CurrenciesOne Australian Dollar at 8:45 AM was buying 70.97 US cents, 53.52 Pence Sterling, 79.06 Yen and 62.41 Euro cents.
Commodities Iron Ore has added 2.1 per cent to at US$85.29. It futures suggest a 1.74 per cent gain.
Gold has shed $6.70 to US$1315 an ounce.
Silver has dropped $0.13 to US$15.63 an ounce.
Oil has increased $0.34 to US$57.28 a barrel.
