Australian market expected to open higher 18/09/19

Steady gains through the afternoon carried Australia’s equity market to a fifth straight gain.  
On the back of broad strength, the S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.3% at 6695.3 — the highest close since early August.  
 
The index has now risen in eight of the last nine sessions. Energy stocks were again one of the big drivers, buoyed by the jump in crude prices after the weekend attacks in Saudi Arabia.

The major banks also pushed higher, while the utilities, health care and property trusts subindexes each logged gains of more than 1%. Only the miners and consumer-staples sectors lost ground.  

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped intraday as oil prices slumped, reversing some of their historic jump the day earlier.  
The blue-chip index fell 21 points, or 0.1%, a day after breaking an eight-session winning streak. The S&P 500 edged down less than 0.1% as a decline in energy stocks offset a rally in safety sectors like real estate and utilities. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite added about 0.1%.  

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dropped 4.8% to $65.69 a barrel after Reuters reported that Saudi output could return more quickly than initially expected. Prices on Monday had notched their biggest percentage gain on record after a weekend attack on Saudi oil facilities left investors struggling to calculate the likely impact on global
supplies.  

Gold futures marked a second gain in a row, extending a climb to the highest price in about a week.  
Traders continued to monitor developments tied to the attacks on Saudi Arabian oil-infrastructure as they shifted focus to the Federal Reserve decision Wednesday on interest rates.  

December gold on Comex tacked on $1.90, or 0.1%, to settle at $1,513.40 an ounce, after a 0.8% gain on Monday. Prices for the most-active contract marked their highest settlement since Sept. 6 for a second straight session, FactSet data show.  
 

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Oil futures declined, with U.S. prices losing nearly 6%.  The move followed news that Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, said the kingdom has restored 50% of its production lost in the weekend attacks on its oil facilities and plans to see its output return to normal by the end of this month, according to The Wall Street Journal.  

The WSJ Dollar Index recently fell slightly to 91.20 from 91.39 on Monday as oil prices gave up some of their gains posted Monday following attacks on Saudi Arabian production facilities.  
The dollar early gained slightly against the Japanese yen, while it slipped against the euro.  

 
In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 closed less than 0.1% lower to 389.33.  
Sterling strength continued to hit U.K. assets across the FTSE 100, with the decline not confined to any one sector. Despite Boris Johnson’s abortive press conference Monday in Luxembourg, markets appeared content to think some progress has been made. The FTSE 100 Index ended down 1.01 points, or 0.01%, to 7320.40.  
 
The French CAC-40 index was up 13.28 points, or 0.24%, to 5615.51 while the German DAX was was down 7.70 points, or 0.06%, to 12372.61.  
 

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite dropped 1.7% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.5%.  Meanwhile, Japanese stocks rose to a four-and-a-half month high as gains in energy stocks offset drops in chemical and airline shares. The Nikkei Stock Average ended up 0.1% at 22001.32, the highest close since April 26.  

South Korea’s benchmark Kospi closed almost flat, edging up 0.01% to 2062.33. The index eked out its gains for an eighth straight session, but trading was thin as investors were assessing the potential impact of higher fuel prices after the attacks on Saudi oil facilities. Retailers and airlines were lower on fears that rising oil prices could suppress private consumption and increase transport costs, but hopes for a U.S.-China trade deal offset the downbeat sentiment.

 Hong Kong shares ended lower amid weak economic data from China and sideline trading as investors await the Fed’s rate decision expected this week. The Hang Seng Index closed 1.2% lower at 26790.24, weighed down by an oil refiner and insurers.