Australian share prices are expected to take off for new highs when the market opens on Thursday, powered by two week peaks in New York and ahead of corporate results, including national carrier Qantas.
The ASX 200 index is expected to begin 0.66% over the previous record finish when trading resumes at 10:00 am AEDT (11:00 pm GMT Wednesday), based on futures trading quoting the March contract 60 points over the previous settlement at 9,140 points.
Stocks on Wall Street ended stronger on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) as a rally by technology companies pushed benchmarks to the highest levels in two weeks amid a switch from concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) disruption to its benefits.
This was before artificial intelligence (AI) giant Nvidia unveiled its latest results.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6%, the S&P 500 added 0.8%, and the technology-laden Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.3%.
Horizon Investments Head of Portfolio Management Zach Hill said the U.S. market was squeezed between negative sentiment and extreme price action.
"I think the (AI) disruption concerns are more acute right now than worries over return on investment," Hill said.
"Investors are trying to grapple with what could potentially be existential risk, and that's a bigger deal than not receiving as much payout as you would like."
The Australian market ended at a new high on Wednesday with the ASX 200 climbing 1.2% to 9,128.3 points, boosted by a bounce in technology stocks and a rise by retailer Woolworths after better-than-forecast results.
Stocks in focus today include Qantas (ASX: QAN), which has reported half-year earnings.
In fixed interest markets, Australian Government bond yields continue to rise, with two year rates up 0.36% to 4.218% and 10 year rates 0.32% higher at 4.718%.
