In a nutshell:
Aussie market set to close the week on a negative note following falls on Wall Street, with AI stocks taking a hit
Renewed US-Iran tensions sent oil back above $US100 a barrel
Trump imposes a 12.5% tariff on Australian imports
Let's dive in.
Overnight Summary
Name | Value | % Chg |
|---|---|---|
Major Indices | ||
 S&P 500 | 7,408 | -1.21% |
Dow Jones | 51,712 | -0.97% |
NASDAQ Comp | 25,138 | -2.15% |
Russell 2000 | 2,940 | -0.67% |
Global Indices | ||
 S&P/TSX | 35,193 | -0.82% |
 Shanghai Composite | 3,877 | +0.25% |
 DAX | 24,763 | -1.56% |
 Hang Seng | 25,211 | +1.28% |
 Nifty 50 | 76,391 | -0.47% |
 Nikkei 225 | 66,423 | +0.46% |
 FTSE 100 | 10,639 | -0.73% |
Name | Value | % Chg |
|---|---|---|
Commodities (USD) | ||
 Gold | 4,049.77 | -1.96% |
 Copper | 6.3 | -2.31% |
 WTI Oil | 92.36 | +6.37% |
Currency | ||
 AUD/USD | 0.6966 | 0.00% |
Cryptocurrency | ||
 Bitcoin (USD) | 65,130 | -1.34% |
 Ethereum (AUD) | 2,699 | -2.83% |
Miscellaneous | ||
US 10 Yr T-bond | 4.703 | +0.99% |
VIX | 18.7 | +12.38% |
US Sectors
Sector | % Chg |
|---|---|
| Industrials | +1.77% |
| Health Care | +1.29% |
| Energy | +0.56% |
| Utilities | +0.52% |
| Real Estate | -0.07% |
| Financials | -0.34% |
Sector | % Chg |
|---|---|
| Materials | -0.99% |
| Information Technology | -1.12% |
| Consumer Staples | -1.14% |
| Consumer Discretionary | -5.12% |
| Communication Services | -5.20% |
S&P 500 Session Chart
S&P closed lower but ended off the session lows
Overnight Markets
Major US benchmarks closed sharply lower and pared only part of their intraday losses into the bell, as a megacap rout dragged the Nasdaq to its worst session in a month (CNBC)
The Magnificent 7 basket shed roughly $767bn in market value, its biggest one-day drop since the April 2025 tariff tantrum, led by Tesla and Alphabet (BBG)
Brent crude topped $100 a barrel for the first time in almost two months after Houthi strikes on two Saudi tankers, lifting energy costs and stoking fresh inflation worries (AP)
Treasury yields pushed to their highest levels of 2026 as the oil spike and hotter rate expectations rippled through the bond market (BBG)
Wall Street's fear gauge, the VIX, jumped back toward 20 as the selloff broadened across sectors (TE)
Iran & Energy
Trump warns Iran (and the Houthis) will face consequences for attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea (CNBC)
Trump says he is seriously considering restarting major combat operations in Iran, but has not yet made a decision (Axios)
Despite current volatility, futures markets suggest investors expect oil prices to moderate to $86 per barrel by December (NY Times)
Three VLCCs navigate Strait of Hormuz amid rising tensions with Iran (BBG)
Russia considering extending its gasoline ban for another six months amid domestic shortage (IFX)
Stocks
Alphabet Q2 FY26 revenue rose 24% to $119.8bn and Google Cloud jumped 82% to $24.8bn, but shares fell about 7% as it lifted full-year capex guidance to $195-205bn (CNBC)
Tesla fell about 15% after Q2 revenue rose to $28.24bn, beating by around 6%, while adjusted EPS of $0.33 missed consensus by roughly 39% and free cash flow turned negative (TK)
Intel jumped about 5% after hours after Q2 revenue climbed to $16.1bn, beating the roughly $14.4bn consensus by around 12%, with adjusted EPS of $0.42 double estimates and its fastest revenue growth since 2011
Central Banks
The ECB left its deposit rate at 2.25% in a unanimous decision. President Lagarde signalled a possible hike at the September meeting as it gauges the Iran war's inflation impact (BBG)
Bank of Japan officials were reported to be open to raising rates faster than economists expect, helping the yen rebound from a four-decade low, as JGB yields hit multi-decade highs (BBG)
Economy
US initial jobless claims fell to 187,000 for the week ended 18 July, the lowest since 1969 and well below the roughly 210,000 expected, pointing to a still-tight labour market (BBG)
Industry ETFs
Name | Value | % Chg |
|---|---|---|
Commodities | ||
| Uranium | 41.13 | +0.39% |
| Steel | 101.83 | +0.16% |
| Lithium & Battery Tech | 69.02 | +0.03% |
| Strategic Metals | 69.53 | -2.02% |
| Copper Miners | 78.37 | -2.03% |
| Gold Miners | 75.02 | -2.16% |
| Silver Miners | 75.28 | -2.74% |
Industrials | ||
| Aerospace & Defense | 238.23 | +3.08% |
| Agriculture | 28.24 | +0.04% |
| Construction | 102.384 | -0.32% |
| Global Jets | 29.32 | -2.59% |
Name | Value | % Chg |
|---|---|---|
Healthcare | ||
| Biotechnology | 188.98 | +1.06% |
Renewables | ||
| Hydrogen | 44.2237 | +0.71% |
| Solar | 52.85 | -1.62% |
Technology | ||
| Semiconductor | 551.24 | -0.77% |
| Data Center & Digital Infrastructure | 28.28 | -0.77% |
| FinTech | 25.11 | -1.65% |
| Robotics & AI | 34.31 | -1.66% |
| Electric Vehicles | 34.3366 | -1.78% |
| Cybersecurity | 37.25 | -2.64% |
| Cloud Computing | 22.52 | -2.81% |
ASX Today
The Trump administration has imposed a 12.5% tariff on Australian imports as part of its latest round of trade measures targeting key trading partners.
There is speculation that Brett Blundy may be interested in pursuing KMD Brands, owner of Kathmandu and other retail assets, according to The Australian
Bain Capital could sell around $200 million worth of Virgin Australia shares after the airline reports earnings, when some escrow restrictions are due to expire, according to The Australian.
Broker Moves
Sandfire Resources downgraded to Neutral from Overweight; target lowered to $19.00 from $21.00 (JPMorgan)
Insurance Australia Group downgraded to Neutral from Overweight; target raised to $8.45 from $7.70 (JPMorgan)
PolyNovo downgraded to Hold from Buy; target lowered to $1.00 from $2.00 (Bell Potter)
Karoon Energy upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform following its Q2 production results (RBC Capital Markets)
Key Events
Key events
Stocks trading ex-dividend:
Fri 24 Jul: Spheria Emerging Companies (SEC) – $0.011
Mon 27 Jul: None
Tue 28 Jul: None
Wed 29 Jul: None
Other ASX corporate actions today:
Dividends paid: A2 Milk (A2M), Clime Investment Management (CIW)
Earnings: Korvest (KOV)
IPOs: Monvia (MNV) at 12:00 pm
AGMs: None
Economic calendar (AEST):
9:00 am: Australia S&P Manufacturing and Services PMI
4:00 pm: UK Retail Sales
5:30 pm: Germany S&P Manufacturing and Services PMI
6:00 pm: Eurozone S&P Manufacturing and Services PMI
11:45 pm: US S&P Manufacturing and Services PMI
