On Thursday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) had another poor session and dropped deep into the red. The benchmark index fell 0.8% to 8,745.2 points.
Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Friday and end the week on a high? Here are five things to watch:
Image source: Getty Images
ASX 200 expected to rebound
The Australian share market looks set to rise on Friday following a solid 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. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones was up 0.25%, the S&P 500 rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq pushed 0.95% higher.
Oil prices fall
It could be a poor finish to the week for ASX 200 energy shares Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR) after oil prices fell overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is down 0.7% to US$63.61 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is down 0.65% to US$67.51 a barrel. This was driven by US economic concerns, which outweighed rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve.
Dividend payday
It is payday for shareholders of a number of ASX 200 shares. This includes stock exchange operator ASX Ltd (ASX: ASX), gambling company Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX: TAH), coal miner Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL), and investment management company Pinnacle Investment Management Group Ltd (ASX: PNI). The latter is rewarding its shareholders with a 27 cents per share dividend on Friday.
Gold price drops
ASX 200 gold shares Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a difficult finish to the week after the gold price pulled back overnight. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is down 1.1% to US$3,677.6 an ounce. Traders may have been taking profit after the US Federal Reserve's rate cut.
Buy Orica shares
Orica Ltd (ASX: ORI) shares are good value according to analysts at Bell Potter. This morning, the broker has initiated coverage on the commercial explosives company's shares with a buy rating and $23.00 price target. It commented: "We expect ORI to grow underlying EBIT across each segment in the short-to-medium term. ORI is well positioned to deliver rapid de-leveraging over FY26-27 (in the absence of M&A), with scope for capital management to prioritise increasing shareholder returns via an extension to the share buy-back program and dividends."
