Australian shares are set to open higher, tracking gains in the Dow Jones on Wall Street. US investors await the start of three weeks of reporting with four major banks on deck Tuesday. Oil faded a rise to $US107 a barrel.
ASX 200 futures were up 9 points or 0.1 per cent to 8812. In New York, the S&P 500 slipped 0.06 per cent; information tech slumped 0.9 per cent. Energy stocks 1.5 per cent gain led eight industry sectors higher.
“Heading into mid-October and third quarter earnings, US equity investors seemingly feel comfortable,” said Lisa Shalett, chief investment officer at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.
In a note, Shalett also said after roughly seven weeks of range-bound churn, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes hit new highs on October 6, paced by strong earnings and revisions. “In our view, the stock market’s behaviour has been completely rational, reflecting rising rates amid valuation compression and earnings durability.”