On Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) followed Wall Street's lead and pushed higher. The benchmark index rose 0.4% to 7,503.2 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to fall
The Australian share market looks set to fall on Thursday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 13 points or 0.2% lower this morning. This follows a poor night of trade on Wall Street which saw the Dow Jones fall 0.9%, the S&P 500 drop 0.45%, and the Nasdaq edge 0.1% higher.
Oil prices sink
Energy producers such as Oil Search Ltd (ASX: OSH) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could tumble lower after oil prices sank overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is down 3.7% to US$67.98 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has fallen 3% to US$70.20 a barrel. Oil prices dropped after US stockpiles increased.
Gold price edges higher
Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) will be on watch after the gold price edged higher overnight. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up 0.1% to US$1,814.9 an ounce. Strong physical demand for gold helped offset concerns over the US Federal Reserve potentially easing asset purchases.
PointsBet shares rated as a buy
The Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) share price could be great value according to analysts at Goldman Sachs. According to a note, the broker has retained its buy rating but trimmed its price target on the sports betting company's shares to $14.90. This follows the release of its fourth quarter update and the announcement of its fully underwritten $400 million capital raising.
Westpac-Afterpay deal in focus
The banking as a service deal between Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) and Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) is set to be reviewed following the latter's acquisition by Square. According to the AFR, the bank is looking at the strategic rationale of providing white-label bank accounts to Afterpay customers at a time when Square is ramping up its activities in the Australian banking sector.
