On Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was on form and recorded a small gain. The benchmark index rose 0.2% to 8,595.2 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
ASX 200 expected to rise again
The Australian share market looks set to rise again on Thursday following a decent night on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 16 points or 0.2% higher this morning. In late trade in the United States, the Dow Jones is up 1%, the S&P 500 is up 0.4%, and the Nasdaq is 0.25% higher.
Oil prices push higher
ASX 200 energy shares Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a good session on Thursday after oil prices pushed higher overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 0.55% to US$58.95 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 0.35% to US$62.68 a barrel. Traders were buying oil after Russia-Ukraine peace talks failed to reach a breakthrough.
Buy 4D Medical shares
Analysts at Bell Potter think that 4DMedical Ltd (ASX: 4DX) shares are a buy for investors with a high risk tolerance. This morning, the broker has retained its speculative buy rating on the lung imaging technology provider's shares with an improved price target of $2.50. It said: "We expect further wins from the 4D Medical sales team being mainly expansion of existing license arrangement to include fee for service revenues for CTVQ."
Gold price rises
It could be a good session for ASX 200 gold shares including Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) on Thursday after the gold price pushed higher. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is up 0.35% to US$4,235.5 an ounce. This was driven by increasing US rate cut bets after the release of weak payroll data.
Buy Harvey Norman shares
Bell Potter thinks investors should be buying Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd (ASX: HVN) shares. This morning, the broker has named the retail giant as one of its high conviction picks with a buy rating and $8.30 price target. It said: "Despite the strong re-rate in the name, HVN trades at ~2.0x market capitalisation to freehold property value as Australia's single largest owner in large format retail with a global portfolio surpassing $4.5b and collectively owning ~40% of their stores (franchised in Australia and company operated offshore). This sees our view that of the 1-year forward ~19x P/E multiple as justified considering the multiple catalysts near/mid-term."
