Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome. Outlook...

Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome.


Outlook for the day: Positive after Nvidia's bullish revenue forecast triggers a fierce tech-led rally on Wall Street.

ASX futures: up 32 points or 0.42%


Overnight themes:

• US stocks hit fresh highs as a knockout revenue result from tech darling Nvidia reignites confidence in the prospects for Artificial Intelligence applications and hardware.
• The Dow and S&P 500 set new records. The Nasdaq has its best session in 12 months, rallying nearly 3% and breaking a three-session losing run.
• Chip-maker Nvidia flies up 16.4% after forecasting revenues will increase threefold this quarter as demand for AI chips takes off. Other chip-makers also see strong gains. AMD gains 10.69%. Arm Holdings rallies 4.17%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rises almost 5% to at an all-time high.
• "The whole package of Nvidia's reporting lends a bedrock of credibility for other AI and technology companies as it clearly appears that Nvidia and AI are here to stay" - Andre Bakhos, president of Ingenium Analytics (per Reuters).
• The Dow breaks 39,000 for the first time. IBM, Microsoft and Apple are prominent among the drivers. Amazon shares climb 3.55% after S&P Dow Jones Indices announces the online retailer will replace Walgreens on the 30-company blue-chip average next week.
• Growth sectors outperform. The S&P tech sector soars 4.35%, consumer discretionary 2.19% and communication services 1.61%. Utilities is the night's only losing sector, falling 0.77%
• The Russell 2000 index of small caps trails the big end of the market with a rise of 1.02%.
• Nickel jumps back above US$17,000 a ton after the White House announces plans for fresh sanctions against Russia following the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The metal climbs 3.57% on the London Metal Exchange amid speculation the sanctions package, due to be outlined tonight, will include Russian nickel and aluminium exports.
• Iron ore falls for a fourth session in China following reports of debt-ridden local governments halting infrastructure projects. China ore prices fall 1.49%. A weaker greenback helps Singapore ore edge up 0.15%.

Key events today:

• Earnings season: Brambles, Newmont, Sandfire, Block, Pexa Group, Perseus Mining, Gold Road Resources, Piedmont Lithium, Monash IVF, Latitude Group, Arcadium Lithium, Accent Group, Aussie Broadband, Austal, Bapcor, Avita Medical, Coast Entertainment, Coventry Group (source: CommSec).
• China new home prices - 12.30 pm AEDT

S&P 500: up 105 points or 2.11%

Dow: up 457 points or 1.18%

Nasdaq: up 461 points or 2.96%

Dollar: up 0.03% to 65.56 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): down 1.49% to US$124.28

Brent crude: up 64 US cents or 0.77% to US$83.67

Gold: down US$3.60 or 0.2% to US$2,030.70

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: down 2.35%

Bitcoin: up 0.98% to US$51,477

Copper (LME): up 0.77% to US$8,608

Nickel (LME): up 3.57% to US$17,400

Uranium (spot price): down 0.99% to US$100

Lithium carbonate (China spot): up 0.07% to US$13,365

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: up 0.08%

BHP: up 1.05% (US); up 0.74% (UK)

Rio Tinto: up 0.34% (US); up 0.37% (UK)