On Thursday the S&P/ASX 200 index gave back its morning gains to finish the day marginally lower at 6,542.4 points.
Will the market be able to bounce back on Friday? Here are five things to watch:
ASX poised to open higher.
The Australian share market looks set to finish the week on a positive note after gains were made on Wall Street overnight. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 index is poised to open 8 points or 0.1% this morning. On Wall Street the Dow Jones rose 0.4%, the S&P 500 climbed 0.4%, and the Nasdaq pushed 0.6% higher.
Oil prices race higher.
Australian energy producers Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) look set to finish the week on a high after attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman sent prices racing higher. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price climbed 2.1% to US$52.23 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price rose 2.25% to US$61.32 a barrel.
Gold price higher.
It could also be a positive finish to the week for gold miners including Resolute Mining Limited (ASX: RSG) and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) after the gold price pushed higher again amid speculation the U.S. Fed will cut rates very soon. According to CNBC, the spot gold price has pushed 0.7% higher to US$1,345.90 an ounce.
Fortescue dividend being paid.
Eligible shareholders of Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) will be paid the iron ore producer's latest dividend later today. A whopping fully franked 60 cents per share dividend is being paid, which equates to a yield of 7.2% based on its last close price. Fortescue has rewarded shareholders handsomely after iron ore prices zoomed higher.
Treasury Wine Estates rated as a sell.
Analysts at Goldman Sachs have continued to rate Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE) shares as a sell after looking through the latest industry data. Goldman notes that "the trends across TWE's key markets remain generally subdued, although the net position has shown some improvement on the prior month's data." The broker has a $13.70 price target on the wine company's shares.
