ASX200 Futures suggest an uptick of just over a third of a per cent (.36%) on the Australian market, ahead of US consumer price index data due for release tonight.
On US markets overnight, the Nasdaq was the best performer – up 0.3%, the S&P500 gained 0.1%, while the Dow Jones pulled back to finish the session in the red.
Meanwhile, back home, the Australian Bureau of Statistics will reveal Building Activity statistics this morning.
In stocks to watch, there are reports Macquarie Group (ASX:MQG) lent around A$250 million to debt-laden British Water supplier Thames Water. Its parent company Kemble Water Finance has defaulted on its debt. While there’s no announcement to date from Macquarie Group on this, yesterday the banking group announced it had become a ‘substantial holder’ in chicken company Inghams Group (ASX:ING).
Wildcat Resources (ASX:WC8) has announced it’s made a new lithium discovery at Tabba Tabba – with a result of 41 metres at 1% lithium oxide, but from 276 metres deep. Wildcat’s dubbed it the ‘Luke’ discovery.
And, Emyria has opened a new, state-of-the-art facility – The Empax Centre – for the development of new treatments, including MDMA candidates, for mental health conditions.
One Australian dollar has been buying US66.2 cents.
Gold reached a new record overnight and has been at A$2353, which is A$3550 after the Bank of China boosted its gold stockpiles last month.
Iron ore is up 3.5 per cent to US$105.50, Brent crude has dropped a per cent on US stockpile relief to just below US$89.50 and natural gas is up 1.75 per cent to US$1.88.