The ASX's new year 'melt-up' extended into a fifth session and a fresh ten-year high following a quiet night on global markets.
The benchmark Australian index, the ASX 200, reached the halfway point ahead by 11 points or 0.2% at 6142 and on track for its strongest close since 2008. Resource stocks provided much of the updraft, with metals & mining up 0.8%, materials 0.5% and energy 0.5%. Telecoms +0.4% and financials +0.3% provided support. Gold stocks declined 0.6%, consumer discretionary 0.5% and health 0.2%.
Wall Street closed mixed overnight as investors took a breather ahead of the start of a new quarterly earnings season later this week. The S&P 500 put on 0.17%, while the Dow lost 0.05%. The market began the year with a string of record closes.
"When you contemplate a market that comes out of the gate that quickly, you're going to get a pause," Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley FBR in the US, told CNBC.
This morning, Dow futures were down four points or 0.02%. China's Shanghai Composite eased 0.1% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.02%. Japan's Nikkei gained 0.64%.
Crude oil futures put on another 47 cents or 0.76% this morning to US$62.20 a barrel. Gold futures dipped $1.50 or 0.11% to US$1,318.90 an ounce. The dollar was buying 78.53 US cents.
Crude oil is on the march. Glad my commute to work is a short one. (About two metres.) Trading: clawed a pip out of DTZ, then ventured into the murky world of IAM. Sure is dark and confusing in here. A lot of angry people shouting at each other. Anyone bring a torch?
