Wall Street to boost ASX at open

THE Australian market looks set to following in Wall Street’s upward path and open higher, after iron ore prices lifted.

THE Australian market looks set to following in Wall Street’s upward path and open higher, after iron ore prices lifted.

At 0700 AEST on Monday, the share price futures index was up 10 points, or 18 per cent, at 5,661.

In the US, equities lifted with the S&P 500 index posting its best gain in six sessions on the heels of a US payrolls report that gave investors more confidence in the strength of the US economy.

The US economy added 222,000 jobs in June, exceeding expectations of a 179,000 gain.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.44 per cent, the S&P 500 gained 0.64 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite added 63.62 1.04 per cent.

Locally, no major economic or equities news is expected on Monday, although the CoreLogic capital city house prices survey for the past week is due out. The Australian market on Friday fell, erasing its gains for the week as investors worried that central banks are about to wind back economic stimulus measures.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index fell 55.2 points, or 0.96 per cent, to 5,703.6 points. The broader All Ordinaries index lost 53.6 points, or 0.92 per cent, to 5,743.9 points.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar is higher, just hanging on above the 76 US cent mark. The local currency was trading at 76.01 US cents at 0700 AEST on Monday, from 75.89 on Friday.