On Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) finished the week deep in the red. The benchmark index fell 1% to 8,851 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 sink
The Australian share market looks set for a disappointing start to the week following declines on Wall Street on Friday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 156 points or 1.75% lower. In the United States, the Dow Jones was down 0.95%, the S&P 500 dropped 1.3%, and the Nasdaq tumbled 1.6%.
Oil prices surge
It could be a very positive start to the week for ASX 200 energy shares Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) after oil prices surged on Friday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price was up 12.2% to US$90.90 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price was up 8.5% to US$92.69 a barrel. This meant that oil futures rallied 35% for the week, which is the biggest gain in futures trading history.
ASX 200 shares going ex-div
A couple of ASX 200 shares are going ex-dividend this morning and could trade lower. These are entertainment giant Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC) and private hospital operator Ramsay Health Care Ltd (ASX: RHC). The latter will be paying its shareholders a fully franked 42.5 cents per share interim dividend later this month on 26 March.
Gold price rises
ASX 200 gold shares Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a good start to the week after the gold price pushed higher on Friday night. According to CNBC, the gold futures price was up 1.6% to US$5,158.7 an ounce. The precious metal rose after US economic data wasn't supportive of rate hikes.
ASX 200 rebalance
S&P Dow Jones Indices has announced changes in the S&P/ASX Indices, effective prior to the open of trade on March 23 following its quarterly review. Catapult Sports Ltd (ASX: CAT), DigiCo Infrastructure REIT (ASX: DGT), and EBOS Group Ltd (ASX: EBO) shares are being dumped from the index. Replacing them will be Predictive Discovery Ltd (ASX: PDI), SRG Global Ltd (ASX: SRG), and Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL).
