On Thursday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fought hard and managed to record the smallest of gains. The benchmark index rose slightly to 9,032.8 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Friday and end the week on a high? Here are five things to watch:
ASX 200 expected to rise
The Australian share market looks set to rise on Friday following a good night in the United States. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open 13 points or 0.15% higher this morning. In late trade on Wall Street, the Dow Jones is up 0.4%, the S&P 500 is up 0.7%, and the Nasdaq is pushing 1% higher.
Oil prices jump
It looks set to be a great 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 5.6% to US$61.77 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 5.4% to US$65.96 a barrel. Oil prices jumped after the US sanctioned big Russian oil companies.
Pilbara Minerals update
All eyes will be on Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) shares this morning when the lithium miner releases its eagerly anticipated quarterly update. Analysts at Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) are forecasting spodumene shipments of 215kt, which is slightly ahead of consensus estimates. However, it expects the lithium giant to report an average realised price of US$689 per tonne, which is slightly softer than the market's expectations.
Gold price rebounds
ASX 200 gold shares Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a good finish to the week after the gold price rebounded overnight. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is up 1.9% to US$4,142.5 an ounce. This was driven by geopolitical risks and trade tensions.
Buy Temple & Webster shares
Bell Potter thinks that Temple & Webster Group Ltd (ASX: TPW) shares are good value following a recent pullback. This morning, the broker has upgraded the online furniture and homewares retailer's to a buy rating with a $28.00 price target. It said: "We continue to see catalysts of outperformance as market share capture in an expanded TAM is expedited with range, pricing/scale advantages, backed by a strong balance sheet ($144m cash). Following the sell-off in the sector/name, our PT of $28.00 implies a total expected return of >15% and we upgrade our recommendation to BUY."
