The Australian share market looks set for a strong start to the trading day, with ASX 200 futures rising 100 points, or 1.27%, as of 8:30 am AEST.
This positive lead follows a broad-based rebound on Wall Street overnight, where US stocks recovered losses sustained in the previous session. While there were no clear catalysts driving the rebound, some market participants suggest the earlier selloff may have been amplified by thin trading volumes in the wake of the long weekend.
“Trade tensions, the rapid back-and-forth in policy decisions, and President Trump’s public discussion over the weekend of firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell have undermined investors’ confidence in US assets and the Fed and heightened the risk of a policy-induced recession,” IG Markets analyst Tony Sycamore wrote.
“These factors are hastening the exodus of offshore investors from US equity markets, into more defensive stock indices, including our ASX200, which includes banks, consumer staples, telcos, and goldies.”
Investors can expect a strong session for growth-oriented sectors on the ASX today, while recent high-flyers in the gold space may see some profit-taking.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index closed marginally weaker on Tuesday, dipping 2 points or 0.03% to finish at 7,816, after recovering from an early session drop of 74 points that saw it touch an intraday low of 7,745.
Despite the volatility, gains in defensive and resource-linked sectors helped the index pare back earlier losses. Financials led the charge, rising 1.23%, followed by Consumer Staples up 0.33% and Materials with a 0.19% gain. In contrast, the Information Technology sector shed 2.26%, Energy dropped 1.91%, and Health Care fell 1.35%, acting as the day’s biggest drags.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia extended its rally to a ninth consecutive session, climbing 4.19% to a record closing high of A$168 and contributing 36 index points. The resilience in gold stocks also supported the broader market, with gold prices touching A$3,500 per ounce. Evolution Mining advanced 4.85% to A$8.87, Regis Resources rose 3.81% to A$4.90, De Grey Mining added 3.41% to A$2.73, and Northern Star Resources lifted 2.95% to A$23.01.
However, uranium stocks came under pressure after Deep Yellow delayed a final investment decision on its Tumas project in Namibia, citing insufficient pricing support. Shares in Deep Yellow plunged 8.24% to A$0.83, while Paladin Energy dropped 12.53% to A$3.98, Bannerman Energy fell 12.52% to A$1.75, and Silex Systems declined 10.95% to A$2.44.
US equities rebound on easing trade tensions; Tesla rallies post-earnings despite miss
“US stocks rebounded overnight as renewed hopes of a de-escalation in the trade standoff between the United States and China lifted market sentiment,” Sycamore noted.
“The optimism arose from Treasury Secretary Bessent's remarks at a JPMorgan-hosted summit, where he described the ongoing tariff standoff as "unsustainable." However, Bessent clarified that formal talks have not yet started and cautioned that negotiations are likely to be challenging, which may turn out to be the understatement of the year.
After the market closed, Trump stated he has "no intention" of dismissing Powell, although he reiterated calls for lower interest rates, saying, "We think it's the perfect time to lower the rate, and we'd like our chairman to be early or on time, rather than late." In response, S&P 500 futures have gained 1.60% in after-hours trading.
Tesla Inc reported a miss on both revenue and earnings in its first-quarter 2025 results. Total revenue declined 9% year-on-year to US$19.34 billion, down from US$21.3 billion in Q1 2024. Adjusted earnings per share came in at US$0.27, falling short of market expectations for US$0.39.
The electric vehicle manufacturer also withdrew its 2025 vehicle growth guidance, attributing the decision to rising tariffs and reputational challenges stemming from Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk’s political activities.
Despite the earnings disappointment, Tesla shares rose 4.63% to US$249 in after-hours trading following comments from United States President Donald Trump, who stated he had no plans to remove Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell—a signal that eased investor anxiety about central bank stability.
Attention now turns to the release of the S&P Global Flash Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), due tonight, as markets look to gauge the impact of tariff-related uncertainty on economic activity. Consensus forecasts point to a decline in the composite PMI to 51, from 53.5 previously, placing it just above the 50 threshold that separates expansion from contraction.
Meanwhile, the interest rate futures market is currently pricing in 78 basis points of rate cuts through to the end of 2025, with the first reduction expected in June.
European markets edge higher despite US political uncertainty
European sharemarkets advanced on Tuesday, although investor sentiment remained fragile following renewed criticism of US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell by US President Donald Trump.
The continent-wide FTSEurofirst 300 index edged 0.3% higher, supported by a 0.7% rise in banking stocks and a 1.2% gain in the basic resources index, buoyed by higher metal prices. In London, the FTSE 100 rose 0.6%.
Consumer goods giant L’Oréal outperformed the broader market, climbing 6.3% after reporting stronger-than-expected first-quarter sales. The upbeat performance provided a contrast to last week’s slower growth from LVMH’s Sephora division.
Currencies, commodities and metals
Currencies
Currency markets saw broad US dollar strength.
- The euro fell from US$1.1542 to US$1.1419.
- The Australian dollar slipped from US64.37 cents to US63.61 cents.
- The Japanese yen weakened to JPY141.55 per US dollar.
Commodities
Crude oil prices recovered ground, with Brent crude adding US$1.18 or 1.8% to US$67.44 per barrel and US Nymex rising US$1.23 or 1.9% to US$64.31. The rebound followed the announcement of new US sanctions on Iran and gains in global equity markets.
Metals
Base metal prices were mixed.
- Copper surged 3.2% amid broad-based fund buying triggered by a softer US dollar, while aluminium dropped 1.2%.
- Gold futures fell US$5.90 or 0.2% to US$3,419.40 per ounce. Spot gold, which briefly spiked 2.2% to US$3,500.05 during the session, later traded near US$3,380 as markets responded to Trump’s ongoing pressure on the US central bank.
- Iron ore futures eased slightly, down US4 cents to US$99.88 per tonne, as investors balanced temporary tariffs on Chinese steel exports with expectations of stronger near-term demand.
What about small caps?
The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries fell 0.71% to 2,965.10 yesterday, however over the last five trading days it has gained 1.58%.
It’s a slow news coming off Easter and heading into the ANZAC Day long weekend.
You can read about the following and more throughout the day.
- Riversgold Ltd has reported further assay results from its recently completed 32-hole, 1,805 metre vertical aircore drilling program at the Northern Zone Intrusive Hosted Gold Project, situated 25 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. Results from an additional 414 samples across 11 drillholes remain pending and are expected shortly.
- Cyprium Metals Ltd has confirmed that IGO Limited will return the Paterson Exploration Project joint venture tenements to Cyprium, effective 30 April 2025. The company, focused on restarting operations at the Nifty Copper Complex in Western Australia’s Paterson region, regains full control of the exploration ground following IGO’s withdrawal.
- Solis Minerals Ltd, a copper-gold explorer with a Latin American focus, has released an update on copper mineralisation at its Cinto Project in southern Peru. Channel sampling has confirmed porphyry copper mineralisation over a potential area measuring approximately 3 kilometres by 0.75 kilometres, comprising multiple mineralisation styles. An induced-polarisation (IP) geophysical survey is currently being planned to refine drill targets across the Cinto Project area.