ASX prepares for bright start as Wall Street bounces

Australia’s stock market rose in early trading on Tuesday after a solid lead from Wall Street, with traders taking their final steps ahead of a report that could show whether inflation is cooling in the right way or the market headed for worse prepared for pain.

The S&P/ASX200 was up 44.40 points, or 0.6 percent, to 7,462.20 at 10:15 a.m. AEDT, with the technology, energy, consumer discretionary and financials sectors leading the rise. Overnight, the S&P 500 was up 1.1 percent, the Dow Jones was up 1.1 percent and the Nasdaq Composite was up 1.5 percent.

Wisetech Global and Carsales.com were both up 1.79 and 1.63 percent respectively in early trade on the ASX. Big banks CBA, NAB, ANZ and Westpac all opened higher after Monday’s losses.

Miners Rio Tinto, BHP and Fortescue were also in the green with slight gains on the open.

Loading

Meanwhile, shares of Lynas Rare Earths recovered a bit this morning after it was confirmed that Malaysia’s Atomic Energy Licensing Board has extended its license to operate in the country for a further 3 years from March 2nd.

The license still includes onerous conditions, such as the need to move all search and leaching operations offshore by July 1. Lynas is still appealing to the Malaysian government to lift these conditions. Failure to do so will put Lynas at risk of disruption if its Kalgoorlie plant is not ready to handle cracking and leaching by July 1st.

Shares in manufacturing company James Hardie Industries plummeted, shedding 7.12 percent in morning trade after the company announced it would trim annual earnings reviews in its North American market for a third time.

Oil and gas giant Santos has written down the value of some of its oil and gas production and exploration assets by about $320 million following a review of its reserves.