The Australian share market is set to open higher this morning. On Friday, Wall St extended their winning streak with all three indexes gaining more than 1.3 per cent over the week. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones recorded their fourth week in the black, while the Nasdaq scored their third week in a row . The rally was seen on the back of better than expected profit earnings when reporting season kicked off last week, amid optimism for strong economic rebound. Across the Atlantic, European markets continued their rally after notching record highs while in Asian markets, shares in China and Japan fell for the second week, as investors digested China’s official numbers which showed a 18.3 per cent growth in the economy for the first quarter (yoy). Back home, the local market followed the US lead extending our bullish run for the fourth week.
Figures from around the globeWall Street closed higher on Friday: The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5 per cent to close at 34,201, the S&P 500 added 0.4 per cent to close at 4,185 and the NASDAQ closed 0.1 per cent higher at 14,052.
European markets closed higher on Friday: London’s FTSE added 0.5 per cent, Paris gained 0.9 per cent and Frankfurt closed 1.3 per cent higher.
Asian markets closed higher on Friday: Tokyo’s Nikkei gained 0.1 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.6 per cent and China’s Shanghai Composite closed 0.8 per cent higher.
Back home, the SPI futures are pointing to a 0.5 per cent gain.
On Friday, the Australian share market closed 0.1 per cent higher at 7063.
Economic news outlookLet’s take a look at local economic news and major events that are likely to affect markets.
The week kicks off on Tuesday with ANZ - Roy Morgan set to release their weekly consumer sentiment index report. The index rose by 5.9 per cent and reached its highest value since November 2019, which is a 17-month high. Confidence leaped as the Brisbane lockdown eased, with the announcement of the Trans-tasman travel bubble with New Zealand which actually opens today.
Also keep an eye out for the minutes from the Reserve Bank that is due on Tuesday. These are generally published two weeks following their monthly meeting. The RBA board said it will not increase interest rates until inflation is between 2-3 per cent, lower unemployment and higher wages growth.
On Wednesday, preliminary retail trade data for March is issued from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. It’s expected by economists to show a 0.8 to 1 per cent bounce after snap lockdowns in Victoria and Western Australia and recovery from the floods.
On Thursday, March labour force figures are to be published from the ABS and also the NAB business survey.
On Friday, the IHS-Markit purchasing managers’ indexes for April are due which covers the manufacturing and services sectors for developed world economies.
Overseas economic outlookThere are a number of companies to report their first quarter results as earnings season on Wall Street hits the ground running with the likes of Coca Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Netflix, United Airlines and Bank of America scheduled to report this week. Amid this, jobless claims and home sales figures are due.
In Europe, the Central Bank's monetary policy meeting is scheduled to discuss interest rates and government stimulus.
IPOsThere are a number of companies set to make their debut on the ASX this week. Keep an eye out for Latitude Financial
(ASX:LFS) who are pencilled into the calendar to take the spotlight tomorrow. On Wednesday, Mighty Kingdom
(ASX:MKL) are next in line. This is a games developer company who has worked with the likes of Disney and Lego with over 50 million players after raising $18 million at 30 cents a share. On Friday, mineral explorer company Nickelx
(ASX:NKL) is scheduled.
Ex-DividendsImage Resources NL
(ASX:IMA) is paying 2 cents unfranked.
Katana Capital
(ASX:KAT) is paying 0.5 cents fully franked.
New Hope Corporation
(ASX:NHC) is paying 4 cents fully franked.
CurrenciesOne Australian Dollar at 7:45 AM was buying 77.29 US cents, 55.89 Pence Sterling, 84.09 Yen and 64.54 Euro cents.
CommoditiesIron Ore has gained 2 cent to US$178.43.
Iron Ore futures suggest a 0.3 per cent gain.
Gold was up $13.40 to US$1780 an ounce.
Silver has added $0.14 to US$26.11 an ounce.
Oil was down $0.33 to US$63.13 a barrel.
