Australian shares are poised to climb on Friday after Wall Street and other major global markets closed at record highs, buoyed by strong gains in the resources sector and investor optimism despite renewed tariff headlines from the US.
ASX 200 futures were up 27 points, or 0.31%, as of 8:30 am AEST.
Wall Street and global snapshot
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both notched fresh all-time highs, closing near session peaks as investors shrugged off a new round of tariff announcements from US President Donald Trump. Delta Air Lines surged 12% on an upbeat forecast, helping lift the broader transport sector and fuelling a risk-on mood across equity markets.
Nvidia rose 0.8%, pushing its market cap above US$4 trillion — the first listed company to reach the milestone — while Tesla jumped 4.7% after announcing plans to expand its robotaxi service.
European markets also rallied, led by a 1.2% gain in the UK’s FTSE 100, which hit a second straight record high. European mining stocks rallied more than 3% amid growing expectations of fresh stimulus in China.
Elsewhere, traders largely looked through Trump's announcement of a 50% copper tariff taking effect from August 1 — and an identical levy on Brazilian exports — as they await next week’s US CPI release and earnings season kick-off.
ASX and local highlights
The S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.59% on Thursday for its best session in more than a week, powered by strength in materials, gold and bank stocks. Seven of 11 sectors closed in the green, with industrials and property also contributing.
Momentum is expected to continue today, with overnight commodity gains offering support.
Among today’s newsmakers, John Lyng Group entered a scheme implementation deed with Pacific Equity Partners at $4.00 per share, and TPG announced plans to return $4.7 billion to shareholders following the sale of its Vocus stake.
In a relatively quiet morning for small-cap news, a couple of names are still making headlines:
- FireFly Metals Ltd (ASX:FFM, TSX:FFM, OTC:MNXMF) doubled its Share Purchase Plan to A$10 million after receiving $28.2 million in applications, boosting its total cash and liquid investments to ~$145 million to fund drilling and mining studies at its Green Bay copper-gold project.
- Ora Banda Mining Ltd (ASX:OBM, OTC:ESGFF) reported FY25 gold production of 94koz (up 32% year-on-year) and issued FY26 guidance of 140–155koz at an AISC of $2,800–$2,900/oz, supported by the ramp-up of Sand King Underground and a proposed ore sale deal with Norton Gold Fields.
- Titan Minerals Ltd (ASX:TTM, OTC:TTTNF) announced further wide and high-grade trenching results at the Cerro Verde prospect, including 6.4m at 2.3 g/t gold and 12.1 g/t silver. Two drill rigs are advancing resource work ahead of a Q3 update.
Commodities and currencies
Commodities rallied across the board, with copper and iron ore leading the charge on hopes of Chinese property stimulus and strong industrial demand. Oil prices fell sharply after reports that OPEC+ may pause output increases from October.
- Gold rose 0.3% to US$3,323.72/oz
- Copper surged 2.6% to US$11,171.20/tonne
- Iron ore gained 1.5% to US$96.76/tonne
- WTI crude dropped 2.3% to US$66.83/barrel
- AUD/USD firmed 0.47% to 0.6583
Bitcoin continued its rally, jumping 4.3% to US$116,104 to set another all-time high.
What’s on today
Investors will be watching for the UK’s May GDP data (4:00 pm AEST) and Canadian unemployment figures due tonight. Rare earths may be in focus after the US Defense Department agreed to invest $400 million in MP Materials, highlighting growing strategic interest in the sector.
Locally, there are no earnings reports or AGMs scheduled today. Dominion Income Trust and Turners Automotive Group trade ex-dividend, while Metcash follows on Monday. Investors can also expect continued market reaction to Trump’s latest tariff measures and early positioning ahead of key US inflation data next week.