Local stocks are expected to open stronger after a strong session at Wall St, as investors cheered the US Treasury’s move to inject $20 billion into US banking heavyweight Citigroup.
At 0634 AEDT, the December stock index futures pointed to a stronger opening, jumping 3.9 per cent to 3,574.0, or a 148.9 point premium to the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index.
At 0723 AEDT, the Dow Jones industrial average climbed 374.66 points, or 4.66 per cent, to 8,421.08, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index jumped 48.87 points, or 6.11 per cent, to 848.90 and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 75.36 points, or 5.44 per cent, to 1,459.71.
European shares ended sharply higher, as Washington's move to rescue banking giant Citigroup and the UK government's measures to help the economy boosted sentiment and lifted commodities and banks.
BHP Billiton could set the tone for the market, with its shares poised to open 10 per cent higher based on trade in its US-listed ADRs, buoyed by strong gains in oil and copper prices.
Oil surged nearly ten per cent to near $US55 a barrel on expectations that OPEC will cut output again and as stock markets rallied off the US government's plan to rescue US bank Citigroup.
Gold jumped to a five-week high on Monday as investors piled in seeking safety after the US rescue of banking giant Citigroup reinforced financial uncertainty.
Spot gold rose nearly three percent to $US825.20 an ounce, its highest since October 16.
Copper surged to a 10-day high on Monday, bouncing almost eight per cent after hitting lows, on a rise in imports by China, the world's top consumer, firmer equity markets and a weaker dollar.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose to the highest since November 14 at $3,815 a tonne, up 7.8 per cent versus $US3,540 at the close on Friday.
In events scheduled today, ABB Grain unveils its full year earnings, while retailer Harvey Norman, pallet company Brambles and private hospital operator Ramsay Health Care Ltd hold their annual general meetings.
The Australian sharemarket closed a quarter of a per cent higher in a mixed day on the local bourse on Monday.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 gained 0.25 per cent, or 8.6 points to 3,425.1. The broader All Ordinaries index rose 0.05 per cent, or 1.9 points to 3,388.8.
