daytrading april 14 pre-market

Morning traders. Thanks Shantaram.

Market wrap:

Shares are likely to open lower after valuation concerns dragged Wall Street to its heaviest weekly loss since 2012.

The June SPI 200 futures contract eased 14 points or nearly 0.3% to 5406 as BHP and Rio Tinto fell as the materials sector led the retreat in the US.

The S&P 500 dropped 17 points or 0.93% on Friday, which produced its sharpest two-day fall since June on the back of Thursday's 2.1% dive. The index lost 2.7% for the week, erased its gains for the year and closed below its 50-day moving average. The Dow fell 143 points or 0.89% on Friday for a weekly decline of 2.4%. The Nasdaq lost 54 points or 1.33%, closing just below 4,000 with a weekly deficit of 3.1%.

Investors continued to reduce positions in sectors seen as potentially over-valued relative to the rest of the market. The Nasdaq Composite had been trading on an earnings multiple more than twice that of the S&P 500. The Nasdaq Biotech Index fell another 2.84% on Friday to a four-month low and the Russell 2000 index of small caps lost 1.44%.

"You need to shake out some of the speculative money and throw water on the irrational exuberance," Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab in the US, told Bloomberg. "It's a good reminder that markets don't go straight up. While the long-term is positive, we need to have these steps back along the way. We need this kind of pullback."

The first week of a new earnings season finished on a wobbly note with shares in JPMorgan sliding 3.66% after its Q1 earnings missed expectations. Wells Fargo fared better, rising 0.78%.

Economic data had limited impact. A preliminary reading showed consumer sentiment improved this month to its highest level since July. The UMich gauge rose to 82.6 from a final March reading of 80. The producer price index jumped a seasonally-adjusted 0.5% last month, well ahead of expectations.

BHP and Rio Tinto pulled back after iron ore turned lower. Spot iron ore for import to China fell US$2.20 or 1.9% to US$116.90 a tonne on Friday. BHP slipped 0.18% in US action, Rio 1.03%.

Nickel was again a bright spot, rising 1.9% in London trade to a 13-month high to seal its best week in more than a year. Also in London, copper edged up 0.2% and tin 0.1%, while zinc lost 0.7%, aluminium 0.5% and lead 0.6%. US copper for May delivery slid 0.1% or a third of a cent to US$3.04 a pound.

Gold ended a winning week with a mild downturn on Friday as strength in the US dollar discouraged interest in alternative stores of wealth. Gold for June delivery slid $1.50 or 0.1% to settle at US$1,319 an ounce, a gain of roughly 1.2% for the week.

Oil edged higher after the International Energy Agency reported a drop in output from OPEC nations last month. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for May delivery put on 34 cents or 0.3%, settling at US$103.74.

European markets played catch-up following Thursday's heavy decline in the US. The Stoxx Europe 600 index dived 1.39% as Germany's DAX gave up 1.48%, France's CAC 1.08% and Britain's FTSE 1.2%.

TRADING THEMES THIS WEEK

CORRECTION SPECULATION: The deterioration in mood on global markets last week handed the field to the bears and doom-merchants. Over-extended sections of the US market got a valuable reality check, which spilled into the broader market. Since Wall Street has not seen a genuine correction since 2011 and has been hovering near record levels, it's possible that this downturn could turn into a 10%+ retreat. Much will depend on how the rest of this US earnings season plays out. Australia, having seen less speculative mania, has less to give back, but history confirms the adage that when the US sneezes, the ASX catches a cold. This is one of the better US articles.

US EARNINGS: Much rests on Wall Street's response to a big week of quarterly earnings. If the heavy-hitters beat expectations, this downturn could be no more than a blip in the bull run. Among those reporting this week: Google, Bank of America, Yahoo, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, BlackRock, Coca-Cola, AmEX, GE, Goldman Sachs, Intel and IBM.

HOLIDAY-SHORTENED WEEKS AHEAD: The ASX is set to trade on just seven of the next ten week-days, thanks to Easter and Anzac Day public holidays. That puts the pressure on fundies and investors to compress a lot of action into a shorter timeframe. Let's hope for some T20-style trading days.

CHINA WATCHING: Wednesday looms as an important day for the ASX and Australia's biggest trading partner, with the release of quarterly GDP figures and monthly industrial, retail and asset investment data. Economists expect a marked decline in GDP to 7.4% from 7.7% at the end of last year. Anything better could be a game-changer in attitudes towards China.

ECONOMIC NEWS: This week's domestic highlights include: the minutes from the last Reserve Bank meeting (tomorrow); leading index (Wed); and business confidence and new vehicle sales (Thu). US highlights are: retail sales/core retail sales (tonight); consumer price index/core CPI, Empire State Manufacturing Index (Tue); building permits, housing starts (Wed); and Philly Fed Manufacturing Index and weekly jobless claims (Thu).

Good luck to all.