5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday

Afterpay Ltd (ASX:APT) and BHP Group Ltd (ASX:BHP) shares will be on watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday…

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On Tuesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) followed the lead of global markets and stormed higher. The benchmark index rose 0.5% to 6,700.3 points.

Will the market be able to build on this on Wednesday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 to drop lower.

It looks set to be a much tougher day for the Australian share market on Wednesday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 30 points or 0.45% lower this morning. This follows a subdued night of trade on Wall Street which late on sees the Dow Jones down 0.35%, the S&P 500 down 0.2%, and the Nasdaq 0.4% lower.

Oil prices recover.

Energy producers including Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a better day after oil prices recovered overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 0.45% to US$47.83 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has risen 0.3% to US$51.00 a barrel. Oil prices rose on hopes that US COVID stimulus will fuel increased demand.

Tech shares on watch.

Australian tech shares including Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) were on form on Tuesday and charged higher. This helped drive the S&P ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) a sizeable 1.9% higher yesterday. However, a weak night of trade on the technology-focused Nasdaq index could see these shares reverse some of their gains on Wednesday.

Gold price edges higher.

Gold miners such as Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM) and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) will be on watch after the gold price edged higher. According to CNBC, the spot gold price has risen 0.1% to US$1,881.70 an ounce. A softer US dollar boosted the price of the precious metal.

Iron ore price softens.

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) shares could come under a spot of pressure today after the iron ore price softened. According to Metal Bulletin, the spot iron ore price has fallen 0.5% to US$163.02 a tonne overnight.

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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