On Monday the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) started the week with a gain of 0.21% to 5,841.3 points thanks largely to solid gains in the resources sector.
Will the Australian share market be able to build on this on Tuesday? Here are five things that could shape the day ahead:
ASX futures are pointing to a positive day.
According to the latest ASX futures, the Australian share market is poised to open the day higher by 5 points or 0.1% following solid gains in U.S. markets overnight. At the time of writing the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 0.9%, the S&P 500 is 0.8% higher, and the NASDAQ is on course to finish the day 0.7% higher.
The Royal Commission continues.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), the rest of the big four banks, and AMP Limited (ASX: AMP) will be on watch as the Royal Commission continues investigating dodgy advice from financial planners on Tuesday. On Monday the Commission was told by corporate regulator ASIC that $383 million in compensation has been paid to consumers for poor advice.
Bank of Queensland is due to release its results.
This morning Bank of Queensland Limited (ASX: BOQ) is due to release its first-half results for FY 2018. Morgans have tipped the bank to announce a special dividend alongside its results. Furthermore, the result will provide investors with a snapshot of how the big four banks are performing in FY 2018.
Other results due for release.
It isn't just the Bank of Queensland scheduled to release its results today. Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) is also pencilled in for a release. In addition to this, according to Bloomberg, engineering company Cimic Group Ltd (ASX: CIM) is expected to provide its first-quarter update this morning.
RBA minutes.
The Reserve Bank of Australia's minutes from its latest meeting are due to be released later this morning. While no bombshells are expected to be found within the minutes, they should provide investors with a clearer picture on whether a rate rise will come in 2018. The general consensus appears to be that there will be no increase to rates this year, so anything contrary to that could shake the market.
