On Thursday the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) continued its slide and fell a further 1.1% to 6,160.4 points.
Will the market be able to bounce back on Friday? Here are five things to watch:
ASX futures pointing lower.
Unfortunately, the local market looks set to drop even lower on Friday. According to the latest SPI futures, the S&P/ASX 200 is poised to open the day 0.4% or 25 points lower on Friday. This follows a tough night of trade on international markets. Although the Dow Jones edged higher again, the S&P 500 fell 0.4% and the Nasdaq tumbled 0.9% lower. Elsewhere there were heavy declines in Europe on the DAX and the FTSE. Global trade war concerns are being blamed for the volatility.
Tech shares could drop again.
The Australian tech sector came under heavy selling pressure on Thursday leading to shares such as Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX: APT) and WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) falling heavily. These shares could potentially extend their declines on Friday after another disappointing night of trade for the U.S. tech sector.
Oil prices fall again.
The shares of Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH), Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL), and the rest of Australia's energy producers could come under pressure again today after oil prices continued to tumble. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price fell 1.2% to US$67.89 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price fell 0.9% to US$76.60 a barrel.
Shares going ex-dividend.
A wide range of shares will go ex-dividend this morning for their latest pay outs. These include building materials company Adelaide Brighton Ltd (ASX: ABC), packaging company Amcor Limited (ASX: AMC), disruptive telco MNF Group Ltd (ASX: MNF), satellite-based communication networks provider Speedcast International Ltd (ASX: SDA), and almond producer Select Harvests Limited (ASX: SHV).
James Hardie Industries appoints a new CEO.
Building supplies company James Hardie Industries plc (ASX: JHX) has announced that the company's president, Dr Jack Truong, will succeed long-standing CEO Louis Gries. Dr Truong will be formally appointed to the CEO role toward the end of the company's 2019 fiscal year, at which time Mr Gries will step down as CEO and from the board.
