Day trading pre-market open September 11

Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome and @Patterns.


Outlook for the day: Soft after the Australian dollar hit an eight-month high and US stocks finished below their session peaks.

ASX futures: down 20 points or 0.23%


Overnight themes: ​

• The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite edged to closing records as Oracle had its best day since 1992 and cooler-than-forecast wholesale inflation boosted hopes for a rate cut next week. ​
• The S&P 500 posted a second-straight record finish, up 0.3% after earlier gaining 0.7%. The Nasdaq Composite hit an intraday high before surrendering most of its initial gains, closing just 0.03% ahead. The Dow (which does not include Oracle as a component company) declined 220 points or 0.48%. ​
• Stocks hit early highs after wholesale prices unexpectedly fell last month, clearing the way for a rate cut when the Federal Reserve meets next week. The producer price index (PPI) eased 0.1% in August, well below the 0.3% rise predicted by economists. The July gain was revised downwards to 0.7%. Core PPI also fell 0.1%, below consensus. ​
• “With the PPI surprising to the downside, with [Friday's] employment data showing much greater softness than anticipated, that basically says that there could be a reason for the Fed to cut by 50 basis points,” CFRA Research’s Sam Stovall told CNBC. “What they want to do is to ensure that they are not going to be too slow, as the president describes Fed Chair Powell, and that they do at least keep up with or get ahead of the overall weakening trend... That could, I think, certainly light a fire under the market between now and the end of the year.”​
• AI-related stocks provided most of the momentum after Oracle reported massive gains in cloud database revenue fuelled by demand for AI servers from Amazon, Google and Microsoft. Shares in the company jumped 35.95%. Broadcom, Nvidia and other chipmakers also rose amid optimism over demand for AI. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index hit a new high. ​
• Apple was a drag on both the Dow and Nasdaq, falling 3.23% to a fourth straight loss as investors sniffed at its latest iPhone update amid concerns the company was lagging in the race to integrate AI. ​
• Tech and energy were the pick of the sectors, both gaining 1.76%. Also strong: utilities +1.69%, industrials +0.73% and materials +0.23%. The rest of the sectors saw red, led by consumer stocks and healthcare providers. ​
• The Australian dollar surged to its highest since last November as the greenback wobbled. The Aussie was lately up 0.45% at 66.15 US cents after trading as high as 66.36 cents. A stronger dollar is seen as broadly negative for Australia's export-driven economy (and stock market). Exports become more expensive for overseas buyers, potentially undermining demand. Potential winners from a stronger dollar include retailers selling overseas goods and manufacturers bringing in raw materials. ​
• Iron ore's run of daily rises reached seven, boosted by Chinese restocking after a government-ordered production pause, and by news of a fire at a major Brazilian export hub. Buying interest remained healthy after fire broke out at the Ponta de Medeira port, used by mining giant Vale to ship ore. The miner later said the fire had been extinguished and was not expected to impact its shipment schedule or ore volumes. Benchmark ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange climbed 0.25% in daytime trade to US$113.04 per metric ton. ​
• US gold miners rallied and the yellow metal held near record territory as weaker-than-expected US wholesale inflation data boosted expectations for more rate cuts this year. "Any further weakness in U.S. data should continue to support gold in the view that more than two rate cuts could be on the way before the year is out," Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at City Index and FOREX.com, told Reuters. The NYSE Arca Gold BUGS index of miners gained 2.24%. Spot gold was lately up US$13.02 or 0.36% to US$3,640.26 per ounce. The spot price hit a record US$3,673.95 on Tuesday. US gold futures settled near flat, down 20 US cents or less than 0.01% to US$3,682. ​
• Copper kicked higher as traders interpreted Anglo American's merger with Canadian giant Teck Resources as a "big bet on copper". The merger will create the world's fifth largest copper miner, according to Reuters. Also encouraging buyers: an announcement by Freeport-McMoran has paused mining at its Grasberg mine in Central Papua while efforts continue to free seven workers trapped underground by wet debris. Benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange rallied 0.99% to US$10,012 per metric ton. Nickel, zinc, tin and lead also rose during a broadly positive session. Aluminium traded little changed. ​
• Oil rose for a third session amid heightened tensions in the Middle East following Israel's attack on Hamas leaders in Qatar. Brent crude settled US$1.10 or 1.66% higher at US$67.49 a barrel. ​

Key events today: ​

• US consumer inflation (CPI) - tonight​
• US unemployment claims - tonight ​

S&P 500: up 19 points or 0.3%

Dow: down 220 points or 0.48%

Nasdaq: up 7 points or 0.03%

VIX: up 1.8% to 15.31

US 10-year treasury yield: down 3.9 points to 4.048%

Dollar: up 0.45% to 66.15 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): up 0.25% to US$113.04

Brent crude: up US$1.10 or 1.66% to US$67.49

Gold (futures): down 20 US cents or less than 0.01% to US$3,682

Gold (spot): up US$13.02 or 0.36% to US$3,640.26

Silver (spot): up 27 US cents or 0.65% to US$41.15

Palladium (spot): up US$38 or 3.29% to US$1,191.50

Antimony (China ore): down 0.03% to US$19,131

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: up 2.24%

Bitcoin: up 2.34% to US$113,733

Copper (LME): up 0.99% to US$10,012

Nickel (LME): up 0.43% to US$15,170

Lithium carbonate (China spot battery grade): down 1.58% to US$9,095

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: down 1.79%

Uranium (spot): down 0.32% to US$76.25

Global X Uranium ETF (URA): up 0.6%

BHP: up 0.19% (US); down 1.09% (UK)

Rio Tinto: up 0.37% (US); down 0.48% (UK) ​