Market Updates

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US markets extended gains for a fourth straight session following more economic data pointing to moderation, cementing bets the Fed is approaching the end of its rate hikes. Dow up 38 points (+0.11%). Dow at best up 173 points. Dow at worst down 41 points. S&P 500 breached 4,500, up 0.54% led by tech mega-caps, while regional banks fell. Nasdaq gained 0.54% as bond yields and the USD softened. US small caps Russell 2000 up 0.40%. US ADP private payrolls came in softer than expected, private businesses hired 177k workers in August, the least in five months, missing expectations of a 195k rise and Q2 US GDP also missed expectations, up 2.1% vs 2.4% consensus marginally rising from Q1’s 2.0%.  Among stocks, Nvidia rose 1.0% and Apple gained 1.9% after the company sent invitations to unveil the iPhone 15 on Sep-12.

• ASX to edge higher. SPI Futures up 4 points (+0.06%).
• Gold firmed, up 0.62%.
• Copper extended gains, up 0.26% after the dollar dropped and more weak US data.
• Nickel -0.39%, Aluminium +1.45%, Zinc -0.61%, Lead -0.43%, and Tin +0.24%.
• WTI and Brent were up 0.51% and 0.62% after US data showed tighter crude supply.
• AUD -0.2% to 64.72c. USD Index down 0.36% to 103.16.
• 10Y yield: US 4.11%, Australia 4.07%, and Germany 2.54%.

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ASX 200 kicked 87 points higher to 7298 (1.2%). A killer combo of strong US markets and a much better-than-expected local CPI at 4.9% kept the market pumping. Gains across the board with few exceptions. Lithium was one sector that failed to ignite, which is ironic given lithium’s properties. PLS started well but slid 2.1%, LTR down 0.7%, and MIN mustering a small 1.8% gain. BHP and RIO leading resources, with gains of 1.5% and 2.1%, respectively. Gold miners in demand as Gold Conference kicks off, NCM up 1.6% and NST gaining 1.9%. Oil and gas better as crude rose and gas prices volatile on strike news, WDS up 0.8% and STO up 1.3%. Banks were the usual source of strength, the Big Bank Basket up to $177.45 (+0.95%). NAB the best of the bunch, up 1.6%. MQG kicked 1.4%, and insurers better too, SUN up 2.4%. REITs firm as yields fell, GMG up 1.2% and SGP up 0.5%. Staples better, WOW up 2.0% and COL up 0.9%, with TCL doing better on rates, BXB delivered a pallet of money rising 7.1%, tech only slightly higher. XRO up 1.7%, and WTC up 0.9%. The All-Tech Index up 1.6%. In corporate news, CHN dropped 25.2% on its scoping study assumptions, FLT failed to take off on results a little worse than the market had hoped. Kerry Stokes turned trader, taking the top off some BLD down 8.0%,  BET slipped towards oblivion down another 15.4% on results, CCX  fell 4.8% not so chic after all, as sales fell hard. In economic news, monthly CPI numbers fell to 4.9%, below forecasts of 5.2%. Asian markets firmed slightly, Japan up 0.6%, China up 0.1%, and HK up 0.6%. Dow futures up 8 points. Nasdaq futures up 4 points.

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Wall Street climbed most since June, fuelled by optimism the Fed will pause rates in September following the latest jobs data. The Dow Jones rose 293 points (+0.85%), ending near best levels. Up 304 points at best. Down 29 points at worst. S&P 500 up 1.45% after nearly 90% of companies in the S&P 500 rose, pushing the gauge just shy of 4,500. Nasdaq jumped 1.74%, touching its highest in over two weeks, lifted by Tesla +7.7% and Nvidia +4.2%. US treasuries retreated, 10Y yield down 9.2bps and 2Y yield fell 11.6bps. US small caps Russell 2000 gained 1.42%, and Crypto saw gains as Bitcoin jumped 6.43% after a US court ruling paved the way for the first Bitcoin exchange-traded fund. VIX eased 4.2%, and Gold gathered some momentum in the wake of weaker-than-expected US data, up 0.91%.

• ASX to rise. SPI Futures up 47 points (+0.66%).
• Copper up 1.15% as the USD weakened.
• Nickel -0.65%, Aluminium +0.65%, Zinc +2.26%, Lead +1.22%, and Tin -0.37%.
• WTI and Brent were up 1.38% and 0.73% as the dollar slid and the market weighed the potential impact on energy demand from Hurricane Idalia set to hit Florida this week.
• 10Y yield: US 4.12%, Australia 4.10%, and Germany 2.51%.
• AUD -0.03% to 64.78 US cents. USD Index -0.51% to 103.48.

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ASX 200 climbed another 51 points to 7211 (+0.7%). Banks and resources leading the way, with BHP up 1.2% and RIO doing well up 1.1%. FMG bounced back from a loss yesterday with lithium stocks also in demand, PLS up 5.1%. MIN results cheered the sector rallying 8.0%, with IGO also better by 1.7%. Gold miners continued to attract interest, with NCM up 1.1% and NST up 1.4%. Oil and gas becalmed but coal stocks better. Banks continued higher, ANZ and WBC the pick of the bunch. The Big Bank Basket up to $175.79 (0.5%), MQG had a good day up 1.2%. Industrials slightly higher, COL up 1.1% and WES continuing to move higher up 3.0%. Tech stocks mixed XRO up 1.0% and WTC down 0.4%. The All-Tech Index pretty much unchanged, Healthcare still struggling. In corporate news, results once again dominated, BNPL in demand with EML up 31.5% on a beat, ZIP looking better on results, up 4.6%. SGR moved higher on its numbers and write-offs, TYR also in demand again on results beating expectations, rising 14.7%, and JLG gave a positive outlook and rose 9.0%. In economic news, Consumer confidence rose slightly. Asian markets up slightly; Japan up 0.2%, China up 1.3%; and HK up 2.3%. 10-year yields steady at 4.11%. Dow Futures up 34 points. Nasdaq Futures up 25 points.

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US markets kicked off the final week of August in the green ahead of key economic data, ending just off best levels. The Dow rose 213 points (+0.62%). Dow at best up 306 points. S&P 500 up 0.63%, and the NASDAQ rose 0.84% despite Powell’s comments over the weekend the central bank may need to raise interest rates further to ensure inflation is contained. Focus now shifting to the personal consumption expenditure price index (Fed’s preferred inflation gauge) released Thursday and non-farm payrolls data out Friday. US-listed Chinese companies JD.com, Baidu, and Alibaba rallied over 2% after China halved the stamp duty on stock trading. Goldman Sachs rose 1.8% after a deal was struck to sell an investment advisory business to wealth management firm Creative Planning. 2Y US treasury yields retreated from a near two-year high as the market struggled to gauge the likelihood of additional rate hikes from the Fed.

• ASX to open higher. SPI Futures up 25 points (+0.35%).

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ASX 200 rallied 45 points in quiet trade to 7157 (0.6%). Solid day on US optimism and Chinese stimulus moves. Banks leading the charge, CBA up 1.2% and NAB up 1.3%, with the Big Bank Basket up to $175.00 (+1.1%). MQG found some friends up 0.4%, with insurers slightly firmer. REITs positive led by GMG up 0.7%. Healthcare doing better, RHC up 2.5% and RMD rallying another 0.6% with CSL in demand. Industrials were slightly better. WES up 2.2% on broker upgrades, ALL up 1.4% and WOW up 1.2%. Retailers picking up slightly on better-than-expected retail sales numbers today. JBH up 1.4%, and PMV up 1.7%. LOV fell 4.3%, giving back some of last week’s bounce. Tech was mixed with WTC down 1.7%, XRO up 0.8%, and the All-Tech Index down 0.7%. Miners were mixed. FMG results were overshadowed by the CEO resigning after only 6 months, falling 5.1%, BHP up 1.2% and RIO rallying 0.7%. Lithium stocks fell, led by PLS down 4.0% on broker PTs. Gold miners better, EVN up 3.2% and NST up 2.7%. Oil and gas mixed with coal modestly firmer. In corporate news, HLO up 6.0% on the doubling of TTV, IMD hit the mud after a 22% profit fall, down 15.8%. NXT fell 2.6% despite numbers ahead of guidance. APX was whacked on bad numbers down 32.1% In economic news, retail sales came in at 0.5% better than the 0.3% forecast. Asian markets boomed on China’s latest support for the market. China up 1.5%, HK up 1.5%, and Japan up 1.5%. 10-year yields unchanged at 4.15%. Dow futures up 85 points. Nasdaq futures up 28 points.

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US markets finished higher on Friday as the market weighed remarks from Fed Chair Powell at the Jackson Hole Summit. Dow Jones rose 247 points (+0.73%). Up 342 points at best. Down 70 points at worst. While the S&P 500 and Nasdaq added 0.67% and 0.94%, respectively. The narrative from the Fed didn’t change after hype all week for additional clues. Powell addressed the string of resilient economic data while stating that the Fed is prepared to raise rates further to bring inflation down back to its target of 2%. Powell also suggested that the September interest rate would likely remain unchanged to evaluate incoming data continuing with the “data dependent’ narrative.

On the week, the ASX 200 was down 33 points (-0.46%), Dow lost 0.45%, S&P 500 up 0.82%, and the Nasdaq rose 2.25%. During the week, oil fell by 1.8%, iron ore rose by 1.3%, and gold saw a $17 increase. All metal prices were up, with zinc leading at 3.8% growth. The focus was on results last week. Gold was the top-performing sector, up 3.8%, along with a 1.78% rise in consumer discretionary. Healthcare -2.73% and consumer staples -2.53% were the worst-performing sectors due to Coles disappointing results, while Woolworths and Wesfarmers showed improvement. Utilities were down by 2.25%, and the resources sector fell by 0.3%.

• ASX to rise at opening bell. SPI Futures up 20 points (+0.28%).

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ASX 200 finished the week down 67 points to 7115 (0.9%). Down 33 points for the week. Results the focus. Weakness across the board on the back of the US sell-off. Banks brought back to earth with a bump, the Big Bank Basket down to $173.12 (-1.1%). NAB down 1.8%, with MQG off 0.8%. Insurers also fell hard as QBE dropped 1.6% and IAG off 3.2% on ASIC news. Fund managers also in the dumps. Healthcare mixed, RMD up 0.6% and CSL down 0.2% on director selling. RHC falling again. REITs soft SGP off 1.2% and SCG down 1.5%. Industrials mixed, WES results cheered with the stock up 3.2%, WOW ok too up 0.9%, but elsewhere selling dominated. TCL off 1.1%, ALL down 1.5% and REA falling 1.4%. Tech under pressure, WTC gave back 4.8%, with XRO down 3.3%. The All-Tech Index down 1.2%. MP1 gave back some gains too. In resources, BHP hit hard down 1.7%, RIO off 0.9% and MIN off 1.4%. FMG down 0.6% with PLS off 8.0% on results that disappointed apparently. Gold miners eased, coal stocks under pressure and oil and gas stocks down. WDS off 1.3%, and STO off 1.2%.

In corporate news, AX1 had a great day, proving the retail critics wrong up 17.1%, ABB had a good result up 11.0%, CBO sold a lot of olive oil and rose 5.3%. PXA fell 6.0%.

Nothing on the economic front, some death data to cheer us up the exception. Asian markets under pressure, Japan down 0.9%, HK down 1.1% and China down 0.8%. 10-year yields 4.16%. Dow Futures up 63 points. Nasdaq Futures down 10 points.

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All major US indexes closed sharply in the red overnight, ending near worst levels, losing more than 1% each as profit-taking weighed on shares. Dow Jones down 374 points (-1.08%). Dow at best up 222 points. Dow at worst down 379 points. S&P 500 finished below the 4400 level, down 1.35%, and the NASDAQ lost 1.87% as early session big tech rallies ceased after bond yields rose. Mega cap stocks weighed, including Google -2.1, Apple -2.6, and Tesla -2.9% but Nvidia edged higher another 0.1% after hitting a record high. US treasuries rose 10Y yield edged up 4.3bps, and the 2Y yield, which is the barometer of interest rate expectations, rose 7.1bps. USD Index firmed up 0.54% toward an 11-week high, and the VIX jumped 7.6%.

• ASX to open lower. SPI Futures down 91 points (-1.28%)
• 10Y yield: US 4.23%, Australia 4.11%, and Germany 2.51%
• Copper pulled back after five sessions of gains, down 1.08%, as unease surrounding high-interest rates curbing global growth offset optimism in the uptick of demand from China.
• Nickel -0.53%, Aluminium -1.06%, Zinc +0.42%, Lead -0.46%, Tin -1.47%.
• Brent and WTI oil rose 0.31% and 0.52% after a report of sliding gasoil stocks in Europe.
• Gold prices steadied, up 0.17% despite a stronger USD and an uptick in bond yields.
• Aussie dollar down to 64.13c, down 0.09%. 

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