On Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished the week in a disappointing fashion. The benchmark index fell 0.8% to 8,995.3 points.
Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Monday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to fall
The Australian share market looks set for a subdued start to the week despite a decent finish to the last one on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 6 points or 0.1% lower. In the United States, the Dow Jones was up 0.5%, the S&P 500 rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq pushed 0.5% higher.
Oil prices rise
It could be a positive start to the week for ASX 200 energy shares Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) after oil prices rose on Friday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price was up 0.15% to US$57.54 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price was up 0.4% to US$61.29 a barrel. Traders appear to believe that oil had been oversold.
Zip update
Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) shares will be on watch on Monday when the buy now pay later provider releases its first quarter update. A strong update is expected by the market, with Citi forecasting quarterly EBITDA of $57 million for the three months. This is expected to be driven by US transaction volume growth of 40%+.
Gold price sinks
ASX 200 gold shares Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could start the week in the red after the gold price sank on Friday night. According to CNBC, the gold futures price was down 2.1% to US$4,213.3 an ounce. Traders were selling the precious metal after Donald Trump used a more conciliatory tone when talking about tariffs on China.
Buy Challenger shares
Challenger Ltd (ASX: CGF) shares are in the buy zone according to analysts Bell Potter. This morning, in response to the annuities company's first quarter update, the broker retained its buy rating with an improved price target of $10.25. It said: "The medium term buy case is supported by both the freeing of capital from the APRA proposals and growth opportunities as Retiring Australians are offered advice and products to achieve an optimal retirement income. A small increase in the take up of annuities, with more favourable capital rules could dramatically increase the long-term growth of CGF."
