Australian shares are poised to open modestly higher after Wall Street ended a choppy session mixed but still near record territory, buoyed by a fresh surge in precious and base metals. ASX 200 futures were up 29 points (+0.3%) at 8:30 am AEDT, pointing to a steady start to the week despite a quiet, holiday-thinned session with NSW markets closed for Labour Day.
Wall Street mixed as defensives lead
US stocks finished unevenly on Friday as traders weighed the prolonged government shutdown against resilient rate-cut hopes and strong corporate earnings momentum.
The S&P 500 inched 0.01% higher to notch its sixth straight gain, while the Dow Jones added 0.5% and the Nasdaq slipped 0.3%.
Defensive pockets outperformed, with utilities and healthcare each rising more than 1%, while technology names eased after a run of record-breaking gains. Boeing lagged on fresh delays to its 777X program, and Tesla fell despite posting record quarterly deliveries as investors priced in life after US tax credits.
Gold rallied back to all-time highs and copper jumped more than 2.5% as traders rotated towards hard assets, helping offset softer manufacturing data and the ongoing data blackout from Washington’s shutdown.
ASX recap
Back home, the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.46% on Friday to 8,987.4 — its third gain in four sessions — as the index continued to flirt with record levels. Tech stocks led the charge with a 1.6% gain, while health care, consumer discretionary and financials also advanced. Materials rose 0.3%, supported by firmer metals prices, while energy and utilities eased as oil extended its losing streak.
The Small Ordinaries outperformed, jumping 1.2%.
Commodities and currencies
Gold surged 0.8% to US$3,886 an ounce, regaining record ground, while silver rallied 2.1% to just under US$48. Copper jumped to US$10,064 a tonne — a 16-month high — as supply disruptions at major global mines stoked bullish sentiment.
Oil steadied, with Brent up 0.7% to US$64.53 a barrel, though both benchmarks still posted their sharpest weekly losses in three months after OPEC+ agreed to a modest November production increase.
Iron ore edged up to US$104.36 a tonne amid China’s ongoing National Day break.
The Australian dollar slipped to around US$0.658, tracking a stronger greenback and cautious risk tone. Bitcoin extended its climb, trading near US$123,000 amid renewed “digital gold” narratives during the US shutdown.
What’s on today
It’s set to be a subdued session locally given the NSW public holiday, with limited corporate and economic data on tap. Harvey Norman trades ex-dividend, while the Melbourne Institute inflation gauge is due later in the morning.
Globally, attention turns to China’s trade data early in the week and a string of central bank updates midweek, including the RBNZ rate decision.