ASX 200 futures were down 25 points, or 0.28%, at 8:30 am AEST. The benchmark index closed last week 5 points higher at 8,973, locking in a monthly gain of 2.63% and extending its rally to more than 25% since April.
Materials led last week with a 2.62% rise, followed by energy and real estate, both up 1.29%, and consumer discretionary, up 0.22%. Telecommunications (-2.82%), health care (-1.84%), consumer staples (-1.45%) and utilities (-0.92%) weighed on the index.
Tabcorp surged 40%, while SiteMinder gained 32.12%, AP Eagers 22.74% and Nuix 22.58%. Major decliners included Domino’s Pizza (-21.95%), Reece (-20.68%), Telix Pharma (-20.35%) and Woolworths (-13.04%).
The main local focus this week will be Wednesday’s second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) release. Forecasts point to quarterly growth of 0.6%, lifting the annual rate to 1.7%, consistent with the Reserve Bank of Australia’s forecast. Such an outcome would underscore the case for further monetary easing given the economy’s pace remains below its 2.5–3% potential.
Interest rate futures are pricing in a 5-basis-point cut at the RBA’s September 30 meeting, 25 basis points by November 4, and 34 basis points by December 9.
US markets
Wall Street ended lower on Friday as technology stocks retreated. The Nasdaq fell 0.35%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.10%, and the Dow Jones declined 0.19%. Core personal consumption expenditure inflation rose 0.3% in July, lifting the annual rate to 2.9%, complicating the Federal Reserve’s September decision.
Stock declines included Nvidia (-3.32%) on concerns over data centre revenues, Dell (-8.88%) after weaker profit guidance, and Tesla (-3.5%) following a 40% plunge in European registrations. The non-farm payrolls report due Friday is expected to show 78,000 jobs added, with unemployment rising to 4.3%.
European markets
European shares weakened on Friday, dragged lower by banks. NatWest lost 4.8%, Barclays fell 2.2% and Lloyds dropped 3.4% after a think tank recommended the British government tax the interest banks earn on reserves held at the Bank of England.
- The FTSEurofirst 300 index slipped 0.7% on the day, though it finished August up 0.9%.
- In London, the FTSE 100 dipped 0.3% but gained 0.6% across the month, supported by resource and industrial stocks despite financials under pressure.
Currencies
The US dollar softened against major peers.
- The euro climbed from US$1.1650 to close near US$1.1685, while sterling also edged higher after better-than-expected UK consumer data.
- The Australian dollar traded from US65.21 cents to around US65.40 cents, supported by firmer commodity prices.
- The Japanese yen strengthened, moving from 147.40 to 146.78 per US dollar, before easing back toward 147.00 at the close.
Commodities
Brent crude slipped 0.7% to US$68.12 a barrel and US Nymex crude fell 0.9% to US$64.01, with both benchmarks posting sharp August declines on concerns over US demand and the prospect of more OPEC+ supply.
Base metals were mixed.
- Copper rose 1.2% to a five-week high, ending the week up 1.6% as traders positioned for stronger September demand.
- Aluminium eased 0.1% but still posted a 0.4% weekly gain.
- Gold futures climbed 1.2% to US$3,516.10 an ounce, notching a 2.9% weekly rise and 4.7% monthly gain — its strongest performance since April — as investors priced in a likely September Fed rate cut.
- Iron ore added 0.1% to US$101.81 a tonne, extending its weekly advance to 0.4% on continued demand from China.