Investors are likely to see more red ink on their trading screens as the Australian market sets out on its journey across the final day of the reporting season.
The tone was set overnight on Wall Street where the major stock indices finished lower as United States President Donald Trump continued to affect sentiment on global markets more than almost any other factor.
At 9:20 am AEDT (10:20 pm GMT Thursday) the S&P/ASX 200 March share price index (SPI) contract was trading 69 points (0.8%) lower than the previous settlement at 8,177.
Stocks fell in New York on Thursday (Friday AEDT) as investors reacted to Trump’s confirmation of tariffs on Canada and Mexico and the latest quarterly result from technology giant Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.5%, the S&P 500 shed 1.6% and the Nasdaq Composite dived 2.8%.
Strong earnings results from Coles (ASX: COL) and Qantas (ASX: QAN) had helped to lift the Australian market on Thursday as the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3% to close at 8,268.2 points.
Companies scheduled to report today include Star Entertainment (ASX:SGN), Harvey Norman (ASX: HVN), Endeavour group (ASX: EDV) and Life360 Inc (ASX: 360).
Investors may also keep an eye on the big movers on Thursday including AP Eagers (ASX: APE) and Medibank Private (ASX: MPL) which rose, and Perpetual (ASDX: PPT), which fell.
Burrell Stockbroking wealth adviser Adam Dight said the Australian market was unsettled by the stream of announcements from Trump along with expectations that interest rates would be higher for longer.
“It’s a 24/7 news story and everyone is tired of it,” Dight said.
As for rating the quality of results reported by Australia’s listed companies this season, he said: “Overall it’s going to be a five out of 10.”
Dight said he was looking forward to full year results from Life360 which, he said, was trading on a higher price earnings because of high growth expectations and amid speculation it would enter the S&P/ASX 200 index.
In the fixed interest markets, 10-year and two-year Australian Treasury bond yields eased by 0.16% and 0.21% to 4.327% and 3.767% respectively.
