On Friday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished the week in a positive fashion. The benchmark index rose 0.8% to 6,766.8 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Monday? Here are five things to watch:
ASX 200 expected to edge lower
The Australian share market looks set to edge lower this morning following a mixed finish to the week on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the week 3 points lower this morning. On Wall Street on Friday night, the Dow Jones climbed 0.9%, the S&P 500 rose 0.1%, and the Nasdaq index dropped 0.6%.
Tech shares could fall
It could be a difficult day for ASX tech shares including Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) and Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) after a poor finish to the week on the tech-heavy Nasdaq index. This was driven by surging bond yields. The US 10-year treasury yield climbed to 1.625%, which is its highest level in over a year. As the local tech sector tends to follow the Nasdaq's index's lead, this doesn't bode well for today's trading session.
Oil prices drop
Energy producers such as Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could start the week in the red after oil prices dropped on Friday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price fell 0.6% to US$65.61 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price dropped 0.6% to US$69.22 a barrel.
Gold price softens
Gold miners Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) will be on watch on Monday after the gold price softened on Friday. According to CNBC, the spot gold price dropped 0.15% to US$1,719.80 an ounce. Despite this decline, the gold price still had its best week in seven weeks.
Quarterly rebalance
S&P Dow Jones Indices has announced its March 2021 Quarterly Rebalance. Six new companies will be added to the illustrious index on 22 March. Two companies joining the index are electronics products company Codan Limited (ASX: CDA) and investment platform provider Hub24 Ltd (ASX: HUB). The companies leaving the index include the underperforming Bravura Solutions Ltd (ASX: BVS) and Service Stream Limited (ASX: SSM).
