ASX 200 futures were up 43 points (+0.53%) at 8:30 am AEDT, pointing to a stronger finish to the week after Thursday’s muted local session.
The S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.04% yesterday to 8,588.2, a day where the market rotated away from resources and back towards consumer-facing stocks and parts of tech. Small caps lagged again — the Small Ords fell 0.21% — while energy remained the clear problem child, extending a rough stretch that’s been driven as much by stock-specific news as it has by commodity prices.
Wall Street: Inflation cools, chips lift the mood
Overnight, US equities snapped back from a weak patch. The S&P 500 gained 0.8%, the Dow added 0.3%, and the Nasdaq jumped 1.5%, helped by a broad rebound in growth stocks and a strong read-through from the semiconductor complex.
Two themes did most of the work.
First, delayed US inflation data came in softer than expected, with headline CPI falling to 2.7% year-on-year and core easing to 2.6%. Ordinarily that would have sparked a bigger re-pricing in rate expectations — but with the October report missing and questions lingering about data collection during the shutdown, the bond market’s reaction was relatively restrained.
Second, earnings from Micron helped revive the AI trade. Its results and outlook pointed to strong demand for high-bandwidth memory and tighter supply conditions beyond 2026, which was enough to pull chip-linked names higher after a choppy week where “AI build-out” optimism has been competing with funding and profitability concerns.
US yields drifted lower but stayed in familiar ranges, with the 10-year around 4.12% and the 2-year near 3.46%.
Europe: BoE delivers, ECB holds
In Europe, the central bank calendar delivered what markets expected. The ECB held rates, while the Bank of England cut by 25 basis points to 3.75%, with officials signalling future moves are likely to be a closer call as they balance softer growth against inflation risks.
Equity markets leaned into the improved US lead late in the session, with the Euro Stoxx 50 and FTSE 100 both finishing higher.
ASX: A narrow lift masks an energy hangover
Thursday’s ASX session was essentially a flat close — but beneath the surface it was a day of rotation.
Consumer staples and discretionary stocks were among the better performers, communications and real estate also found support, and tech managed a small gain. Materials were modestly higher, but the big-picture story was still energy: the sector fell another 1.5%, continuing a slide that has been punishing some of the market’s most widely held names.
The weakness has spilled into adjacent pockets of the market, too. Uranium names were hit hard on Thursday after Boss Energy slumped sharply following a review of its Honeymoon project, a reminder that in a market this selective, single-stock events can do as much damage as macro.
Looking into today, the offshore tailwind should help sentiment, but the local market still looks split: growth and consumer names are trying to stabilise, while energy remains in the penalty box and small caps are having to work harder for bids.
Commodities and currencies
Oil has steadied after a volatile week. WTI is around US$56 a barrel and Brent near US$60, with geopolitics — including US policy moves affecting Venezuelan supply and the fragile status of Russia–Ukraine talks — keeping traders alert even as the broader supply backdrop remains heavy.
Base metals were a touch firmer, though not decisively so. Copper was broadly flat, while gold eased slightly but remains near recent highs around US$4,330/oz.
The Australian dollar bounced modestly, trading around US66.1 cents, after briefly dipping below 66 cents in the prior session.
What’s on today
It’s a busy global diary to close out the week:
- Japan CPI is due this morning, followed by the Bank of Japan policy decision this afternoon, where markets have been leaning towards a 25bp hike.
- UK retail sales prints tonight.
- In the US, existing home sales and final University of Michigan sentiment are due.
With futures pointing higher, the ASX has a chance to end the week on a better note — but after two weeks of sharp swings driven by the AI narrative, oil volatility and patchy macro signals, markets still look selective rather than broadly risk-on.