On Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished the week with a small gain. The benchmark index rose 0.15% to 8,787.7 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Monday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to rise
The Australian share market looks set for a good start to the week following a positive finish to the last one on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 21 points or 0.25% lower. In the United States, the Dow Jones was up 0.65%, the S&P 500 rose 0.6%, and the Nasdaq pushed 0.45% higher.
Oil prices rise
It could be a decent start to the week for ASX 200 energy shares such as Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) after oil prices pushed higher on Friday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price was up 1.1% to US$65.72 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price was up 1% to US$70.13 a barrel. This was driven by news of drone attacks hitting Russian supply.
ASX 200 shares going ex-dividend
A number of ASX 200 shares are going ex-dividend this morning and could trade lower. This includes a range of REITs such as Arena REIT (ASX: ARF), Centuria Industrial Reit (ASX: CIP), Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT (ASX: CQE), HomeCo Daily Needs REIT (ASX: HDN). In addition, gold miner Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX: GOR) is going ex-dividend for a payout relating to its takeover.
Gold price rises again
ASX 200 gold shares including Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could start the week positively after the gold price pushed higher again on Friday night. According to CNBC, the gold futures price was up 1% to US$3,809 an ounce. This was driven by the release of US inflation data which was supportive of further rate cuts.
Buy Premier shares
Premier Investments Ltd (ASX: PMV) shares are good value according to analysts at Bell Potter. This morning, the broker has retained its buy rating and $26.50 price target on the Smiggle and Peter Alexander owner's shares. The broker said: "We view PMV as trading at a discount to our coverage, considering the Premier Retail division with two global roll-out worthy brands offering ~7% EBIT growth in FY26e and a P/E of ~12x excluding equity investments, land bank/cash while retaining a strong balance sheet supportive of M&A as attractive. Maintain BUY."
