Local stocks are poised to open little changed as Wall St rebounded from earlier losses.
What you need2know:
• SPI futures -3 at 5374
• AUD at 93.54 US cents, 95.25 Japanese yen, 67.74 Euro cents and 55.74 British pence.
• On Wall St, S&P500 +0.7%, Dow Jones +0.6%, Nasdaq +0.3%
• In Europe, Euro Stoxx 50 -1.3%, FTSE100 -0.6%, CAC -0.9%, DAX -1.7%
• Spot gold tumbles 1.9% to $US1302.69 an ounce
• Iron ore adds 0.1% to $US117.10 per metric tonne
• Brent oil up 0.2% to $US109.26 per barrel
• LME three-month copper flat at $US6667 a tonne
What’s on today
Australia: building and construction activity; Westpac-Melbourne Institute Leading Indexes of Economic Activity
NZ: CPI
US: housing starts, Federal Reserve Beige Book, industrial production
China: monthly indicators including Q1 GDP
A survey of 13 economists by AFP saw a median forecast of 7.3 per cent growth for China in the first three months of the year, which would mark the fourth slowdown in the past five quarters, putting China on track for its worst annual performance since 1990.
Stocks to watch
Hartleys Research is maintaining a “speculative buy” on Icon Energy (ICN) with a target price of 23¢.
Morgans said it has a clear preference for Crown Resorts (CWN) over fellow casino operator Echo Entertainment (EGP) and wagering groups Tabcorp (TAH) and Tattersalls (TTS), in a note about its “high conviction buys”.
The federal government may delay the announcement of which investment banks will manage the $4 billion float of Medibank Private until after the Easter holiday period, the Australian Financial Review is reporting today.
Currencies
The US dollar has pared gains against the euro after rising tensions in Ukraine sent US bond yields lower and capped demand for America’s currency.
In late afternoon trade in New York, the euro was down 0.08 per cent at $US1.3809, after having retreated around a half per cent on Monday. The greenback was up 0.01 per cent against the Japanese yen, at 101.85 yen, and was up 0.06 per cent against the Swiss franc , at 0.8803 franc.
The US dollar index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, was last up 0.09 per cent.
Commodities
Base metals are lower, led by nickel, as investors sold risky assets on worries about demand in top consumer China and on concern about tensions in Ukraine.
Nickel, mainly used in stainless steel, fell the most as investors also locked in profits following a rally to 14-month highs due to a ban on ore shipments from top exporter Indonesia and concern about supply from Russia, another top producer.
Three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange fell as much as 3.7%. It was untraded at the close, but last bid at $US17,650 from $US17,790 at the close on Monday.
Iron ore price at risk of slump amid China financing crackdown | A crackdown in China on financing backed by commodities risks unleashing a flood of iron ore sales from tens of millions of tonnes sitting at Chinese ports, raising the prospect of price slump.
United States
Stocks ended higher after a volatile session on Tuesday, lifted by gains in Coca-Cola and Johnson & Johnson, though weakness in Apple, Tesla and Netflix limited the Nasdaq's advance. After the close, Yahoo reported first-quarter sales that beat expectations.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index increased 0.2% in March as a rise in food and shelter costs, especially rental housing, offset a decline in gasoline prices. Economists had expected a 0.1%rise.
Coca-Cola reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue as it ramped up spending on marketing and advertising, boosting sales in emerging markets such as China.
Europe
European stocks sank on Tuesday, resuming last week’s sell-off as worries over escalating tension in Ukraine and weak updates by bellwethers including Nestle spooked investors.
SABMiller, the world’s second-largest brewer by sales and which has a large exposure to Africa, China and other emerging markets, posted a modest rise in full-year lager sales volumes, sending its shares down 2.3%.
Ireland nudged up its growth forecasts for 2014 and 2015, reversing a trend of downgrades over recent years but the government is sticking with planned tax increases and spending cuts to reduce a still high budget deficit.
What happened yesterday
Stocks rallied on Tuesday on signs the world’s biggest economy is growing and confirmation from the Reserve Bank of Australia that interest rates are set to remain low. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 29.3 points, or 0.55pc, to 5388.2
