Afternoon trading Feb 1

Thanks Oscar and morning crew.


Half-time round-up:

Firming US equity futures and solid Chinese trade figures helped Australian shares rally for a second day.

The benchmark index, the ASX 200, put on 48 points or 0.8% to reach 6086 by the halfway point as traders bet last night's slim gains on Wall Street marked a turning point after two days of steep declines. The S&P 500 turned positive late in the session to secure a rise of 0.05% after the Federal Reserve left its key rate on hold and reaffirmed its faith that the US economy is gathering pace. S&P 500 futures strengthened this morning, recently up 9.75 points or 0.35%.

"The language in the [Federal Reserve rate] statement is a little strong, but it's not dramatically hawkish," Ernie Cecilia, CIO at Bryn Mawr Trust, told CNBC. "This is about the recognition of a stronger economy and perhaps higher inflation."

The monthly factory update from China came on bang in line with expectations. The January Caixin manufacturing PMI held steady at 51.5, as predicted. China's Shanghai Composite put on 0.19% this morning, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.12% and Japan's Nikkei 1.13%.

In Australia, all sectors rallied bar telecoms (-0.6%), led by energy +1.2%, consumer discretionary +1%, utilities +1% and financials +1%. Materials added 0.9%.

Crude oil futures improved 13 cents or 0.2% this morning to US$64.86 a barrel. Gold futures added $4.10 or 0.31% to US$1,347.20 an ounce. The dollar was buying 80.55 US cents.



Powerful rebound at the top end of the market, but I'm damned if I could get a trade out of it. I use a lot of price alerts and on a good day my PC pings away like a slot machine. This morning: silence. My watchlist may need refreshing. Other matters: worth noting there is scepticism among some market commentators that this US retrace has run its course. Last night's reversal did not look especially convincing, whatever US futures indicate this morning.