Australian shares are poised to recover modestly on Tuesday morning after Monday’s sharp selloff, with ASX 200 futures up 12 points (+0.13%) at 8:30 am AEST. That follows a mixed overnight session on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both notched new record closes, though they faded from stronger intraday gains in the final stretch of trading.
The local benchmark plunged 89 points (-1.02%) yesterday, its worst session since Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcement in April, as investors locked in profits after a string of record closes. Financials led the decline, with banks under pressure, while the Small Ords index also dropped 0.55%.
Wall Street hits new highs but loses steam
US equities edged higher overnight, but most gains were surrendered late in the session. The S&P 500 closed above the 6,300 mark for the first time, up 0.14%, while the Nasdaq added 0.38% on strength in Alphabet, Amazon and other tech giants. However, the Dow slipped slightly, down 0.04%.
Megacap tech stocks drove the early rally, helped by falling Treasury yields and a subdued economic calendar. Alphabet rose 2.7% ahead of earnings on Wednesday, Amazon gained more than 1%, and fintech firm Block surged 7.2% as it prepares to join the S&P 500. But breadth remained weak, and JPMorgan analysts warned the rally may be overcrowded, citing red flags in heavily bought names like Nvidia and Coinbase.
The Nasdaq’s momentum came despite growing geopolitical concerns, as the White House reaffirmed its August 1 “hard” deadline for sweeping new tariffs and hinted at more unilateral tariff letters being prepared. Bond yields fell as investors sought safety, with the US 10-year down 5 bps to 4.38%.
ASX corporate and macro agenda
Investors will digest the Reserve Bank of Australia’s meeting minutes today at 11:30 am AEST, looking for clarity after the central bank surprised markets by holding rates steady earlier this month. While the RBA is expected to keep its cautious stance, recent soft jobs data has tilted sentiment towards future rate cuts.
On the corporate front, Brookfield has acquired a 19.9% stake in Cromwell Property Group, while Insignia Financial reported an $8.5 billion rise in funds under management and administration (FUMA) ahead of a $3.3 billion takeover by CC Capital. Champion Iron has joined forces with Nippon Steel and Sojitz to advance its Kami iron ore project in Canada.
In small caps action so far this morning:
- Solis Minerals Ltd (ASX:SLM, TSX-V:SLMN, OTCQB:SLMFF) has intersected more visible copper and gold in its second drill hole at the Chancho al Palo project in Peru. The 697-metre hole follows IOCG and porphyry-style mineralisation in the first hole. Assays are due July/August, with the rig to mobilise to Ilo Este once drilling wraps up.
- Nexus Minerals Ltd (ASX:NXM) has confirmed a broad gold footprint at its Payns Prospect in WA, with 45 of 46 RC drill holes hitting mineralisation. Early composite assays returned results up to 8 metres at 7.99 g/t gold. One-metre samples are now being submitted for analysis to better define the system’s high-grade core.
- Askari Metals Ltd (ASX:AS2) has appointed experienced African exploration geologist Lachlan Reynolds as technical consultant to help lead the next phase of work at its Nejo Gold Project in Ethiopia. The district-scale project covers 1,174 km² across the Arabian-Nubian Shield and hosts both gold and copper targets.
Gold rallies on trade jitters, boosting miners
The standout overnight was gold, which surged 1.4% to US$3,400/oz — its highest in more than a month — amid a weakening US dollar and renewed tariff concerns. The move sparked a broad rally in gold miners, with the VanEck Gold Miners ETF jumping 3.7%.
Other commodities followed suit: copper climbed 1.15%, nickel rose 1.74%, and iron ore lifted to a five-month high of US$97.84/tonne after China confirmed it would proceed with its massive Yarlung Zangbo River hydropower project. The AUD was little changed at US$0.652.