US markets bounced back after three consecutive losing sessions & extended their first quarter advance.
The S&P 500 closed at a new record high finishing the day up 0.86 per cent at 5,248. The Dow Jones closed up 1.2 per cent and the Nasdaq finished up 0.51 per cent.
Turning to US sectors, all sectors finished in the green with Utilities & Real Estate the best performers closing up 2.75 per cent & 2.42 per cent respectively. The worst performing sector Communications closing up just over 0.1 per cent.
In company news Cintas closed up over 8 per cent after announcing better than expected earnings numbers. Biopharmaceutical giant Merck closed up almost 5 per cent on news the U.S. FDA has approved Winrevair, the company’s new treatment for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.
In good news for small caps, the Russell 2000 small caps index rose 1.5 per cent outperforming the the broader market. The Russell 2000 is up less than 4 per cent in 2024 versus the S&P 500 which is almost 10 per cent higher over the same period.
Investors will now turn their attention to the upcoming jobless claims, GDP and consumer sentiment data.
Futures
The SPI futures are pointing to a 0.8 per cent rise.
Currency
One Australian dollar at 7.35am was buying 65.35 US cents.
Commodities
Gold gained 0.69 per cent. Silver added 0.43 per cent. Copper rose 0.07 per cent. Oil added 0.09 per cent.
Figures around the globe
European markets closed higher. London’s FTSE added 0.01 per cent, Frankfurt gained 0.50 per cent, and Paris rose 0.25 per cent.
Turning to Asian markets, Tokyo’s Nikkei added 0.90 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.36 per cent and China’s Shanghai Composite lost 1.26 per cent..
Yesterday, the Australian share market closed 0.51 per cent higher at 7,819.61
Ex-dividends
Au Clinical Labs (ASX:ACL) is paying 3 cents fully franked
Staude Capital Glb (ASX:GVF) is paying 3.3 cents fully franked
Sigma Health Ltd (ASX:SIG) is paying 0.5 cents 50 per cent franked
Westgold Resources (ASX:WGX) is paying 1 cent unfranked
Dividends payable
Ariadne Australia Ltd (ASX:ARA)
Auctus Investment Group Ltd (ASX:AVC)
Bapcor Ltd (ASX:BAP)
Beach Energy Ltd (ASX:BPT)
BHP Group Ltd (ASX:BHP)
Bisalloy Steel Group Ltd (ASX:BIS)
Breville Group Ltd (ASX:BRG)
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA)
Data3 Ltd (ASX:DTL)
Eagers Automotive Ltd (ASX:APE)
Finexia Financial Group Ltd (ASX:FNX)
Grange Resources Ltd (ASX:GRR)
Gtn Ltd (ASX:GTN)
Iluka Resources Ltd (ASX:ILU)
Imdex Ltd (ASX:IMD)
LaserBond Ltd (ASX:LBL)
Monadelphous Group Ltd (ASX:MND)
Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX:NWL)
Newmont Corp (ASX:NEM)
Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX:NST)
Origin Energy Ltd (ASX:ORG)
Prime Financial Group Ltd (ASX:PFG)
Qualitas Ltd (ASX:QAL)
Steadfast Group Ltd (ASX:SDF)
Step One Clothing Ltd (ASX:STP)
Telstra Group Ltd (ASX:TLS)
The Lottery Corp Ltd (ASX:TLC)
Universal Store Holdings Ltd (ASX:UNI)
Sources: Bloomberg, FactSet, IRESS, TradingView, UBS, Bourse Data, Trading Economics, CoinMarketCap.
