On Friday the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) finished the week on a high with a gain of 0.2% to 5,829.10 points.
This meant that the benchmark index ended a turbulent week with a small weekly gain.
Will the market be able to build on this today? Here are five things that could shape the day ahead:
ASX set to open lower on Monday.
According to the latest ASX futures, the market is expected to open lower by 6 points or 0.1% on Monday following declines on Wall Street and rising geopolitical tensions after the U.S., France, and the U.K. launched air strikes in Syria. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.3%, and the Nasdaq was off just under 0.5% on Friday.
Oil prices tipped to climb higher.
With tensions in the Middle East rising, concerns over oil supply disruptions have sent prices higher. As far as one expert is concerned, these gains could just be starting. The founder and managing director of Akap Energy, Anish Kapadia, told CNBC that US$100 per barrel is a possibility later this year. This would be great news for energy producers such as Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT), Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH), and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL).
Gold miners could be on the rise.
Tensions in the Middle East have also led to a flight to safety and a rise in the gold price. The spot gold price is currently fetching US$1,346 an ounce, up almost 1%. This could give the likes of Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST), St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM), and Resolute Mining Limited (ASX: RSG) a further boost on Monday.
Round two of the Royal Commission.
Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), the rest of the big four banks, and AMP Limited (ASX: AMP) will be on watch today when the Royal Commission turns its focus to financial planning scandals. For the next two weeks the Commission will investigate a range of issues including inappropriate conduct, fees for no service, inappropriate financial advice, and investment platform fee issues.
Shares going ex-dividend this morning.
The shares of New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC) and TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPM) are destined to start the week in the red after going ex-dividend for their respective interim dividends this morning.
