On Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was on form and recorded a decent gain. The benchmark index rose 0.3% to 8,640.6 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 set to sink
The Australian share market looks set to fall on Thursday following a poor night on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 138 points or 1.6% lower this morning. In late trade in the United States, the Dow Jones is down 1.7%, the S&P 500 is down 1.3% and the Nasdaq is 1.4% lower.
Core Lithium shares on watch
Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) shares will be on watch on Thursday. That's because the lithium miner has raised $120 million to support the restart of the Finniss Lithium Project. The company notes that the restart repositions Finniss as a lower cost, long-life, brownfield lithium operation with a shorter path to nameplate production of 214ktpa. Unit operating costs are expected to be A$762 per tonne. This compares favourably to the current spodumene concentrate spot price of US$2,200 per tonne.
Oil prices rise
ASX 200 energy shares Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a good session on Thursday after oil prices rose overnight. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is up 1.7% to US$97.88 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is up 5.3% to US$108.89 a barrel. Oil prices charged higher after Iran threatened to strike oil facilities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
Shares going ex-dividend
A number of ASX 200 shares are going ex-dividend today and could trade lower. This includes infant formula company A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M), hearing solutions company Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH), transport services provider Kelsian Group Ltd (ASX: KLS), telco Spark New Zealand Ltd (ASX: SPK), and coal miner Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL). The latter will be paying its shareholders a fully franked 12.2 cents per share dividend next month on 15 April.
Gold price sinks
ASX 200 gold shares including Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) could have a poor session on Thursday after the gold price tumbled overnight. According to CNBC, the gold futures price is down 3.1% to US$4,853.3 an ounce. Traders were selling the precious metal after the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold.
