Yesterday, the local market had its worst day of the month, however energy and materials remained strong, boosted by discussions by the US to ban Russian oil imports into the US.  

As commodities continue to rise, oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum (ASX:WPL) was up 9.5%, and strong gains were made by gold miners Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST), Ramelius Resources (ASX:RMS) and Gold Road Resources (ASX:GOR). Copper miner IGO (ASX:IGO) and other large mining stocks also lead the ASX200. 

The most traded stocks by Bell Direct clients included Lake Resources (ASX:LKE), Woodside Petroleum (ASX:WPL) and 29Metals (ASX:29M). 

US shares tumbled overnight, amid concerns of higher energy prices stemming from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as well as inflation concerns. The Dow lost almost 800 points, down 2.4%, the S&P500 down 3%, while the Nasdaq fell 3.6%, now sitting in bear market territory.

What to watch today:

• Following US equities, the Australia market is set to open flat this morning. 
• In commodities, the oil price surged to near US$130 a barrel, now trading at US$119. 
• Gold has also jumped, topping $2,000 per ounce for the first time since August 2020. Gold is seen as a safe-haven metal and therefore demand for gold has risen. 
• Seaborne iron ore is also higher. And wheat has jumped as well. Ukraine is responsible for more than 25% of the world’s wheat exports, which will be severely disrupted this year. 
• In economic news, the NAB Business Confidence index will be released today 11:30am AEDT. The index bounced to 3 in January this year, from December’s low of -12. February’s figure is expected to fall to 1. 
• There are several companies going ex-dividend today also, including Iluka Resources (ASX:ILU), Lovisa (ASX:LOV), Mader Group (ASX:MAD) and Sonic Healthcare (ASX:SHL).

Trading Ideas:

• Bell Potter maintain their BUY rating on Flight Centre (ASX:FLT), retaining a positive view on the stocks outlook and competitive position as global travel recovers. Bell Potter have upped their target price from $20 to $20.50. The stock last closed at $17.05, implying 20.2% share price growth in a year. 
• Trading Central have identified a bullish signal in Cobalt Blue Holdings (ASX:COB), indicating that the price may rise from the close of $0.65 to the range of $0.82 to $0.88, over 34 days.