ASX 200 to rise despite global oil slump

Investing.com - Despite the oscillations on Wall Street and a dramatic fall in oil prices due to concerns about international demand and interest rates, the Australian share market is set for a positive start.

As of 8:15 am AEDT (9:15 pm GMT), ASX 200 Futures lifted by 0.4% to 7,019.5, indicating a potential rise in the market. On the other hand, Brent, the global oil benchmark, slid over 2%, falling below $US80 a barrel for the first time since July. The U.S. benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, followed suit, plunging to below $US76 a barrel, a 2.8% decrease around 2:30 pm in New York. This came after a significant 4.3% drop in the previous session.

The Australian dollar lost 0.5% to US64¢, as the market continued to gauge the impact of the Reserve Bank's rate hike and a softening of its tightening bias. On Tuesday, following the RBA's rate hike to 4.35%, the local currency had reached a two-month high of US65.22¢.

Australian three-year bond yields were at 4.14%, and the 10-year at 4.518%. Bond yields have seen a significant drop since last week. Gold also experienced a dip, falling below $US1950 an ounce, after flirting with a move above $US2000 late last month.

In New York, shares struggled to maintain their strong start to November. The NYSE Fang + Index was slightly up as buying momentum began to wane. The yield on the US 10-year note continued to adjust lower, falling 50 basis points from its high in October.

Companies to watch include National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX:NAB), Orica Ltd (ASX:ORI), and Xero Ltd (ASX:XRO), which are expected to release earnings results. Annual meetings are scheduled for Amcor PLC (ASX:AMC), Cooper Energy Ltd (ASX:COE), Myer Holdings Ltd (ASX:MYR), Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX:NEC), Seven West Media Ltd (ASX:SWM), and Star Entertainment Group Ltd (ASX:SGR). Westpac Banking Corp (ASX:WBC) shares are also set to trade ex-dividend.

Today's agenda includes retail card spending data for October from New Zealand at 8:45 am. Overseas data to be released include China's October CPI and PPI at 12:30 pm, and Japan's current account for September.