Originally published by Rivkin Securities
The Dow Jones Industrial Average has closed right on the all-time high from 7 August after climbing 0.3% for the day. Although the Nasdaq 100 was also up, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock actually declined following the announcement of its next iPhone, the iPhone X. The stock closed down 0.4%, somewhat disappointing for the company considering its excitement around the new phone. The S&P/ASX 200 has had a nice bounce so far this week, moving from the bottom to the middle of the three month trading range. There is still room for a further move up before the index hits resistance at around 5,790 points.
The latest oil inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) suggests that gasoline stocks fell by the most on record as the disruptions from Hurricane Harvey still feed through the system. Crude stocks increased, probably the result of the lower refinery activity. There wasn’t a huge reaction in WTI oil prices although it is now sitting at $48.30 per barrel, well off the lows from late August. Further bullish news for oil came from OPEC’s September report which showed that OPEC production dropped for the month of August, offsetting some of the increase that occurred in July. At the same time, OPEC is talking about extending its production cuts past the current March 2018 end date.
Tonight, the US releases its producer price index (PPI) which is generally thought to be a leading indicator of inflation. The forecast is for an 0.3% increase, month on month, following a -0.1% fall the prior month. The Fed will be looking at this data closely in its assessment of when to next raise interest rates.
ASX 200 futures are up 0.4%.
Data Releases:
- US PPI 10:30pm AEST