ASX Today
Global X Uranium ETF surged 4.5% overnight, up 6% over two sessions. Silver climbed 3%, hitting US$36/oz for the first time since 2012.
The Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF gained 2.8%, indicating potential momentum for lithium miners.
ASX 200 Rebalance and Key Corporate Moves
The ASX 200 will see Austal and Nick Scali added, while Healius and Stanmore Resources will be removed before 23 June.
CBA completed the sale of its stake in Bank of Hangzhou for approximately $940 million, increasing its CET1 ratio by 17 basis points.
GemLife received firm bids for its $750 million IPO ahead of this week’s broader bookbuild.
Metcash guided to FY25 underlying NPAT of $273–277 million against $269 million consensus. The company will merge Independent Hardware and Total Tools.
NextDC reported contracted utilisation of 244MW as of 31 May, a 7% rise since early May.
Rio Tinto paused development in the Entree JV area at the Oyu Tolgoi mine due to licensing delays. The ramp-up remains on track for 500ktpa copper by 2028.
Vault Minerals and Regis Resources now lead the bid for Bellevue Gold. Northern Star has exited the second-round sale process.
Wall Street Gains on Jobs, Tech, and Trade Developments
Major US benchmarks extended Friday’s rally overnight. The S&P 500 now trades around 20% above post-Liberation Day lows and sits just 2.5% from its all-time high. The Nasdaq gained 1.52%, the S&P 500 rose 1.12%, and the Dow climbed 1.04%. The Russell 2000 outperformed with a 2.25% gain.
For the week, the Russell 2000 rose 3.19%, Nasdaq increased 2.18%, S&P 500 climbed 1.50%, and Dow added 1.17%.
Investors responded to strong jobs data, the easing Trump-Musk tensions, and the planned resumption of US-China trade talks this week.
Economic Data and Rate Outlook Support Optimism
The US economy added 139,000 jobs in May, exceeding the 130,000 forecast. Unemployment held steady at 4.2%, while average hourly earnings increased 0.4%, above the 0.3% estimate.
Citi now expects three US rate cuts this year, starting in September. Central banks globally also made key moves.
The European Central Bank signalled the end of rate cuts, calling policy “well calibrated”. Trump said a decision on Powell’s replacement is coming “very soon”.
The Reserve Bank of India delivered a surprise 50 basis point cut and liquidity injection but reverted its stance to neutral.
China’s central bank launched a 1 trillion yuan reverse repo operation to avert a liquidity crunch.
Tech and AI Infrastructure Stocks Soar
Tech stocks saw broad gains. Microsoft hit a record high, rising more than 30% since April.
Meta is in talks to invest US$10 billion in Scale AI. Amazon announced US$5 billion for data centres in Taiwan, launching a new AWS cloud region.
Investors poured US$651 million into the Direxion 2x TSLA ETF, the largest weekly inflow since its 2002 debut.
Apple stock struggled due to AI concerns, App Store fees, Google payments, and tariffs ahead of its WWDC.
Corporate Updates Reflect Mixed Outlooks
Walmart’s CFO said stretched wallets have not led to major shifts in consumer spending.
Lululemon cut its FY25 earnings guidance, citing a dynamic macroenvironment and tariff impacts, leading shares to fall.
Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs raised their S&P 500 year-end targets, citing strong economic growth and earnings outlook.
Tariffs and Trade Talks Shape Market Direction
US-China trade talks resume in London this week. Discussions will address rare earth tariffs and advanced tech restrictions.
China plans to fast-track rare earth export licences for US and European automakers. However, magnet supply shortages persist.
Japan’s trade deal with the US looks unlikely before the G7 summit, according to Tokyo’s Akazawa. Trump and Canada’s PM Carney held direct trade talks but need more work to finalise a deal.
Container shipping rates eased after a recent jump driven by tariff concerns.
Deflation in China, Growth in Eurozone and Japan
China’s CPI fell 0.1% year-on-year in May, the fourth straight month of deflation. Producer prices dropped at the sharpest rate in nearly two years.
Despite internal weakness, China’s May exports rose 4.8%, though exports to the US dropped 34.5%. Rare earth exports rose 23% but remain below 2024 levels.
Japan’s Q1 GDP fell 0.2% annualised, beating expectations of a 0.7% drop due to consumer strength.
Eurozone GDP increased 0.6% in Q1, revised up from prior estimates, supported by strong exports from Germany and Ireland.
Broker Moves and Key Events
Broker moves included:
- Austral downgraded to Neutral; target raised to $5.90 from $4.75 (Macquarie)
- Develop Global reiterated Buy; target lifted to $5.00 from $4.00 (Bell Potter)
- Domino’s Pizza downgraded to Neutral; target cut to $24 from $37.40 (Morgan Stanley)
Stocks trading ex-dividend today:
- Pepper Money ($0.125)
- Tasmea ($0.12)
Ex-dividend this week:
- Wed: Infratil ($0.104), Tower ($0.074)
- Thu: Champion Iron ($0.112), Transmetro ($0.05)
- Fri: Dyno Nobel ($0.024)
Dividends paid today:
- Amcor
- Global Data Centre Group
- Waypoint REIT
Key data releases (AEST):
- 10:30 am: Australia Consumer Confidence (June)
- 11:30 am: Australia Business Confidence (May)
- 4:00 pm: UK Unemployment Rate (April)
