On Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) winning streak came to an end when the benchmark index dropped 0.2% to 6,096.5 points.
Will the local market be able to bounce back on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
ASX futures pointing higher.
The Australian share market is expected to open the day higher on Thursday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is poised to open 0.2% or 10 points higher this morning despite a mixed night of trade on Wall Street. Late in the U.S. session the Dow Jones is up 0.1%, the S&P 500 is 0.1% higher, and the Nasdaq is down 0.1%.
Oil prices rise.
Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) shares will be on watch on Thursday after oil prices pushed higher. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 1.4% to US$56.89 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is 1% higher at US$67.11 a barrel.
Wesfarmers results.
Hot on the heels of the Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) results release on Wednesday, it is the turn of Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) to release its results today. This will be the first since the demerger of the Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) business.
Travel shares in the spotlight.
A number of travel shares are scheduled to release their earnings this morning. This includes travel agent giant Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT), leading airline Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN), Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD), and online travel agent Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB). Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) reported its earnings on Wednesday and delivered a strong half year result.
Santos results.
The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price will be on watch today when the energy producer releases its full year result. Its shares are up 31% year to date, so expectations clearly are high. Energy company Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) is also expected to release its results today.
