The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) is set to drift lower when the market opens this morning, following the lead set by Wall Street overnight. The market's attention will then turn to the Reserve Bank of Australia at 2:30pm AEDT when it announces its latest decision on interest rates.
Here's a quick recap:
- FTSE 100 (UK): up 1.2%
- DAX (Germany): up 1.0%
- CAC 40 (France): up 0.1%
- Dow Jones (USA): down 0.3%
- NASDAQ (USA): down 0.2%
Brent oil continued to rise overnight while gold continued to fall, with the shiny metal now fetching US$1,311 an ounce. That could weigh on OceanaGold Corporation (ASX: OGC) some more, while BHP Billiton Limited (ASX: BHP) and Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd (ASX: LNG) could continue to benefit from higher energy prices.
Notably, gold miner St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) also announced it would repurchase US$55 million of senior secured notes after the market closed on Monday as it aims to reduce its debt load.
Bradken Limited (ASX: BKN) will be in focus today after it announced it had received a takeover offer from Tokyo Stock Exchange listed Hitachi Constriction Machinery Co. The bid was worth $3.25 per share, which represents a premium of 34% to the last close, and a 90% premium to the 90-day volume weighted average price (VWAP).
Meanwhile, UK-based fund manager Henderson Group plc (ASX: HGG) has agreed to merge with US rival Janus Capital Group Inc. in a bid to cut costs.
TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPM) has had a horrendous month or so on the markets, its shares falling another 1.3% on Monday. Investors could take a look at that business today.
Other companies worth watching are Australian Agricultural Company Ltd (ASX: AAC) and iSentia Group Ltd (ASX: ISD), as well as Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE). Australian Agricultural company and iSentia rose 9.8% and 5% yesterday, respectively, while lithium producer Orocobre slipped 5.6%.
