On Tuesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fought hard and managed to record the smallest of gains. The benchmark index rose slightly to 8,704.6 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Wednesday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to fall
The Australian share market looks set to fall on Wednesday following a poor night of trade on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 13 points or 0.15% lower this morning. In the United States, the Dow Jones was down 0.45% the S&P 500 fell 0.3%, and the Nasdaq dropped 0.4%.
Oil prices jump
ASX 200 energy shares Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a great session after oil prices jumped overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 4% to US$69.39 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 3.9% to US$72.70 a barrel. Traders were buying oil amid US pressure on Russia.
Rio Tinto results
All eyes will be on Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) shares this morning when the mining giant releases its half year results. According to a note out of Citi, its analysts are expecting Rio Tinto to report a 3% decline in revenue to US$25.9 billion and a 9% reduction in EBITDA to US$11 billion. The latter is a touch below consensus estimates and is expected to underpin an interim dividend of 164 US cents per share.
Gold price rises
It looks set to be a decent session for ASX 200 gold shares Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) on Wednesday after the gold price pushed higher overnight. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is up 0.4% to US$3,324.3 an ounce. Traders were buying gold ahead of US-China trade talks.
Buy Boss Energy shares
Bell Potter thinks that Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE) shares are great value after crashing deep into the red this week. This morning, the broker has retained its buy rating on the uranium producer's shares with a reduced price target of $2.90. This implies potential upside of greater than 50%. It said: "At face value, the sell-off looks over extended, however our confidence in forward guidance is low. Our valuation assumes production at Honeymoon over the short 10Y mine life is limited to ~1.7Mlbs pa and costs remain elevated, until such a time that management can guide differently."
