On Thursday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) had a strong session and raced higher. The benchmark index rose a sizeable 0.9% to 8,639 points.
Will the market build on this on Friday and end the week on a high? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to rise again
The Australian share market looks set to rise again on Friday following a positive night in the United States. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open 45 points or 0.5% higher this morning. In late trade on Wall Street, the Dow Jones is up 0.6%, the S&P 500 is 0.6% higher, and the Nasdaq has stormed 0.8% higher.
Oil prices jump
It could be a good finish to the week for ASX 200 energy shares Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR) after oil prices jumped overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 1.9% to US$67.67 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 1.6% to US$69.61 a barrel. This was driven by tight supplies and Middle East risk.
BHP second quarter update
BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) shares will be on watch today when the miner releases its second quarter update. The team at Macquarie is expecting the Big Australian to report a solid performance during the three months. It said: "We expect BHP iron ore production to beat by 3% while metallurgical coal production to beat by 2%. We anticipate copper and thermal coal output to be in line with VA consensus at 500kt and 3.6mt, respectively." Macquarie expects iron ore production of 77.6Mt compared to the consensus estimate of 75.4Mt.
Gold price falls
ASX 200 gold shares Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a subdued finish to the week after the gold price fell overnight. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is down 0.45% to US$3,343.5 an ounce. A stronger US dollar and solid economic data weighed on the precious metal.
Buy WiseTech shares
WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) shares are in the buy zone according to analysts at Bell Potter. This morning, the broker highlighted the logistics solutions technology company as one of its top picks. It said: "Whilst valuations are high, it continues to be undervalued relative to its growth profile, to other ASX tech stocks such as TNE, and its own history."
