Thanks Bugsam for stepping up this morning. Shout-out to Oscar....

Thanks Bugsam for stepping up this morning. Shout-out to Oscar.


Half-time round-up:

Australian shares ticked higher this morning in cautious trade as the Singapore summit got underway and investors awaited policy outlooks from US and European central banks.

The ASX 200 edged up 18 points or 0.3% to 6062 as US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un met for the first time ahead of a day of negotiations over the Asian hermit kingdom's nuclear ambitions. A mixed market saw gains in IT +2.2%, consumer staples +1.6% and industrials +1.5% tempered by declines in utilities -1%, metals & mining -1.3% and telecoms -0.2%.

Asian markets hovered in positive territory. China's Shanghai Composite was lately up 0.14%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.19% and Japan's Nikkei 0.28%. S&P 500 futures were up one point or 0.04%.

While the Singapore summit captured most of the morning's headlines, traders also looked ahead to central bank meetings this week in the US, Europe and Japan.

"Asset allocators are unlikely to make strategic investment decisions until those events and the Singapore summit are out of the way," ANZ analysts said in a morning note quoted on CNBC.

Crude oil futures extended Friday's gains with a rise of nine cents or 0.14% to US$66.19 a barrel. Gold futures eased 70 cents or 0.05% to US$1,302.50 an ounce. The dollar was buying 76.14 US cents.



Trading: still waiting for a clear shot at goal. Had a few glimpses but the opportunities closed as suddenly as they appeared. Not feeling especially sharp - I blame Book Club (aka Excuse for Blokes to Drink in a Shed on a Monday Night).