On Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was on form and pushed higher. The benchmark index rose 0.6% to 8,447 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 following a poor night of trade on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 31 point or 0.4% lower this morning. In late trade in the United States, the Dow Jones is down 0.55%, the S&P 500 is down 0.85%, and the Nasdaq is 1.15% lower.
Quarterly updates
A number of ASX 200 shares will be releasing their quarterly updates on Thursday. Among the companies that are scheduled to release updates are high-flying buy now pay later provider Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP), battery materials miner IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO), and embattled iron ore and lithium miner Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN).
Oil prices ease
ASX 200 energy shares Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a subdued session after oil prices dropped overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is down 1.3% to US$72.83 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is down 0.9% to US$76.77 a barrel. A rise in US inventories weighed on prices.
Gold price falls
It could be a soft session for ASX 200 gold shares Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) on Thursday after the gold price edged lower overnight. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is down 0.1% to US$2,763.8 an ounce. This was driven by news that the US Federal Reserve hasn't cut interest rates as expected today.
Buy Pilbara Minerals shares
Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) shares could be great value according to analysts at Bell Potter. According to a note, the broker has responded to the lithium miner's strong quarterly update by reaffirming its buy rating with an improved price target of $3.00 (from $2.95). This implies potential upside of 27% for investors from current levels. Bell Potter said: "PLS reported quarterly spodumene concentrate (SC) production of 188kt (BP est. 168kt) and sales of 204kt at 5.3% Li2O (BP est. 168kt); a strong beat to our estimates despite the implementation of the smaller 'P850' operating model which included the idling of the Ngungaju processing plant."
