On Friday the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) may have ended its winning streak, but it still gained a solid 2.8% over the week.
Will the market be able to build on this gain on Monday? Here are five things to watch:
ASX futures pointing higher.
According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the week higher this morning. Current futures contracts are pointing to a gain of 15 points or 0.25% on Monday. This is despite a soft end to the week on Wall Street which saw the Dow Jones and S&P 500 flat and the Nasdaq drop 0.2%.
Oil prices tumble.
Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) shares could come under pressure today after oil prices tumbled lower. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price fell 1.9% to US$51.59 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price dropped almost 2% to US$60.48 a barrel. Traders were hitting the sell button amid concerns about a global economic slowdown.
Falling Chinese tourism to hit Sydney Airport.
According to UBS, courtesy of the AFR, Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD) could find growth challenging in the coming years after its research revealed that Australia has dropped to the fourth-most popular country to visit for Chinese tourists. Its research also shows that these tourists are spending less in airports and more in shopping malls instead.
Banks will be on watch this week.
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) shares will be on watch this week with their U.S. counterparts due to report their latest quarterly results.
Gold price flat.
The spot gold price closed Friday flat at US$1,287.22 an ounce, which could be a relief for shareholders of gold miners such as Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) and Resolute Mining Limited (ASX: RSG). A falling gold price made the gold miners some of the worst performers on the ASX 200 last week.
