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

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


Outlook for the day: Positive ahead of June inflation data as the curtain falls on another month. US stocks finished mixed overnight.

ASX futures: up 29 points or 0.37%


Overnight themes:

• US stocks finished mixed as traders pared holdings in megacap market leaders ahead of trading updates this week.
• The S&P 500 dropped 0.5% as down-pressure from growth and mining stocks outweighed gains across the rest of the market.
• The tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1.28% as investors sold Microsoft ahead of this morning's Q2 earnings, and chip-maker Nvidia tumbled to a two-month low.
• The Dow ground out a gain of 0.5%. More than two-thirds of its 30 component companies advanced.
• Microsoft shed 0.89% in regular trade and added to that loss in after-market action this morning as investors reacted to a revenue miss and disappointing cloud computing growth. The tech giant's shares were lately down 6%. The report also weighed on other megacaps exposed to any drop-off in demand for cloud computing. Amazon sagged 3.4% in after-hours action.
• AI poster child Nvidia fell 7.04% in regular trade amid valuation worries.
• "A lot of people are looking at artificial intelligence now and saying this is all great but I how do I make money on it. Financially the companies are probably doing quite well, but the question is what are you paying for this? These are not cheap stocks and so you need to go into these things with your eyes open" - Stephen Massocca, senior vice president at Wedbush Securities(per Reuters).
• The night's best performers were the energy and financial sectors, up 1.54% and 1.19%, respectively. Drags included tech -2.2%, consumer staples -0.66% and materials -0.36%.
• The Federal Reserve commenced a two-day policy meeting that could provide clues to the timing and number of rate cuts this year. The central bank releases its verdict tonight.
• Oil settled at its lowest level in almost eight weeks as China growth worries clouded the demand outlook. Brent crude declined US$1.15 or 1.4% to US$78.63 a barrel.
• “China is important for the global oil balance, as it is expected to make up more than 50% of global oil demand growth in 2024, so slower-than-expected growth can dramatically change the balance” - ING commodity strategists Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey.
• Iron ore also fell victim to worries about Chinese demand. Benchmark ore dropped 2.77% in daytime trade in China. Singapore's benchmark ore price fell 3.08% to its lowest in nearly four months. A report this morning is expected to show Chinese factory activity contracted for a third straight month.
• Gold climbed back towards all-time highs as the greenback and US treasury yields faded. Gold futures settled US$26.40 or 1.1% ahead at US$2,451.90 an ounce, within sight of the July 16 closing high of US$2,467.80.
• Domestic inflation data due this morning could determine whether or not the Reserve Bank hikes once again interest rates. Both headline and trimmed mean consumer prices are expected to show growth of around 1% for the quarter. Year-on-year price growth is expected to retreat to 3.8% from 4% in May. An upside surprise could force the central bank's hand following a string of unexpectedly "hot" readings in recent months.

Key events today:

• Q4 Consumer Price Index - 11.30 am
• June retail sales - 11.30 am
• China manufacturing, services PMIs - 11.30 am
• Federal Reserve rates decision - tonight
• US private payrolls - tonight

S&P 500: down 27 points or 0.5%

Dow: up 203 points or 0.5%

Nasdaq: down 223 points or 1.28%

Dollar: down 0.21% to 65.37 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): down 2.77% to US$104.14

Brent crude: down US$1.15 or 1.4% to US$78.63

Gold: up US$26.40 or 1.1% to US$2,451.90

Silver: up 66 US cents or 2.37% to US$28.53

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: up 0.42%

Bitcoin: down 1.72% to US$65,968

Copper (LME): up 0.06% to US$9,031

Nickel (LME): up 0.88% to US$16,050

Lithium carbonate (China futures): steady at US$11,542

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: down 0.52%

Uranium (spot): steady at US$83

BHP: down 1.64% (US); down 1.46% (UK)

Rio Tinto: down 1.81% (US); down 1.08% (UK)