On Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was out of form and sank lower. The benchmark index fell 1% to 7,332.5 points.
Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to rise
The Australian share market looks set to edge higher on Thursday despite declines on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 20 points or 0.3% higher this morning. In late trade on Wall Street, the Dow Jones is down 0.45%, the S&P 500 is down 0.3%, and the Nasdaq has fallen 0.3%.
Block hits the ASX boards
After the market close on Wednesday, Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) shares were removed from the Australian share market. They have been replaced with Block, Inc. (ASX: SQ2) shares, which will trade on a deferred settlement basis from 11am AEST this morning. The new SQ2 CDIs will represent shares of Square Class A common stock at a ratio of 1 for 1. In late trade, the Block share price is down over 1% on Wall Street.
Oil prices rise
Energy shares including Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could have a solid day after oil prices pushed higher again. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 1.7% to US$86.87 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 0.9% to US$88.32 a barrel. An outage in Turkey added to the tight supply outlook.
A2 Milk named a buy
The A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M) share price could be good value according to the team at Bell Potter. According to a note this morning, the broker has retained its buy rating and $7.70 price target on the struggling infant formula company's shares. It said: "We see the scope for EPS to double by FY26e, if A2M can execute on the China offline expansion strategy, while regaining 50% of the lost sales (from FY20-21) in English label IMF."
Gold price jumps
Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) could have a good day after the gold price stormed higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 1.7% to US$1,842.9 an ounce. A number of ongoing geopolitical considerations including concerns around Ukraine and Russia have boosted gold's appeal.
