Share prices in Australia are expected to continue rebounding on Thursday after renewed hopes of a ceasefire between the United States and Iran lifted stocks in the U.S.
An 0.29% lift in the ASX 200 index on the open is indicated by futures trading on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), with the June contract priced 25 points above the previous settlement at 8,601 points at the time of writing.
Morgans Financial private client adviser Lachlan Walsh said, although small to mid capitalisation stocks had been sold off heavily in recent months, they were starting to offer value.
“That’s where we need to look – where the most damage has been done. I’m happy to accumulate here,” he said.
Also looking attractive were real estate investment trusts like Scentre Group (ASX: SCG), Stockland (ASX: SGP) and Goodman Group (ASX: GMG), along with high-quality larger stocks, including copper miners.
Although the three major U.S. equities benchmarks ended higher on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT), as conflicting reports about attempts to end the United States' war with Iran sparked volatile trading.
While Iran said it had reviewed a U.S. proposal to end the war and restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, its Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran had no intention to hold talks with Washington.
“There are a lot of frayed nerves out there with sentiment and headlines driving a lot of the market action,” Rosenblatt Securities Equity Sales Trader Michael James was quoted in a Reuters article as saying.
Cetera Investment Management Chief Investment Officer Gene Goldman said: "There is optimism that the proposal and counter-proposal are setting the stage for more negotiations.”
The Dow Jones Industrial Average had ended 0.7% higher, the S&P 500 put on 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.8%.
The same signs of progress in talks to end the conflict had boosted the Australian sharemarket on Wednesday, which staged its best rally in more than two months to end 1.9% higher at 8,601 points.
In fixed interest markets, the Australian Government bond yield curve steepened as two-year rates eased 0.24% to 4.638% and 10 year rates rose 0.32% to 4.952% at the time of writing.
