On Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was a strong performer again and continued to charge higher. The benchmark index rose 1.25% to 7,405.4 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to fall
The Australian share market looks set to give back some of its recent gains on Thursday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 40 points or 0.55% lower this morning. This follows a mixed night on Wall Street, which in late trade sees the Dow Jones down 0.1%, the S&P 500 up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq up 0.4%.
Oil prices rise
Energy shares including Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could have a decent day after oil prices edged higher overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 0.7% to US$72.54 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 0.7% to US$75.97 a barrel. Traders continue to buy oil amid easing concerns over the Omicron threat.
Santos to sell Barossa stake
The Santos share price will also be on watch today after announcing an agreement to sell a 12.5% interest in the Barossa project to JERA for a consideration of approximately US$300 million. This will reduce Santos' stake in the project to 50%. Barossa is one of the lowest cost, new LNG supply projects in the world.
Gold price edges higher
Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) could have a decent day after the gold price edged higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 0.1% to US$1,786.5 an ounce. The gold price rose after the US dollar softened overnight.
Webjet rated a buy
The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price remains in the buy zone despite the emergence of the Omicron variant according to Goldman Sachs. This morning the broker retained its buy rating, albeit with a trimmed price target of $6.90. It said: "We continue to see a long term growth story in this business and view WEB as net beneficiaries of the post COVID recovery."
