Local shares poised to open higher on the back of a broad rebound on global markets, which were boosted by reports from Greece that it's drafting an accord with its creditors.
What you need2know
SPI futures 5752 +12
Australian dollar is fetching 77.30 US cents, 95.59 Japanese yen, 70.88 Euro cents and 50.34 British pence
On Wall St, Dow +0.7%, S&P +0.9%, Nasdaq +1.5% (record close)
In Europe, Stoxx 50 +1.8%, FTSE +1.2%, CAC +2%, DAX +1.3%
Brent crude fell 2.2% to $US62.29 per barrel
Iron ore added 0.5% to $US63.10 per tonne
Spot gold inched 0.1% higher to $US1188.17 per ounce
What's on today
Australia business investment, capex; US pending home sales
Stocks in focus
Andrew Forrest says he has no interest in selling down his 33 per cent share in Fortescue Metals Group and Fortescue will not issue new shares unless the price reflects the company's high underlying asset value.
Deutsche Bank views the 17 per cent fall in WBC Westpac's share price over the past six weeks as "unjustified given strong fundamentals, a 1H15 result which was only marginally weaker than expected (ex one-offs), and three-year forecast growth which we expect will exceed domestic focused major bank peers".
Macquarie Wealth Management has an "outperform" on OzForex and a price target at $2.70 after revenues and key operating metrics were modestly ahead of its forecasts.
Currencies
Citi revised upwards near-term AUD:USD assumptions, and is now expecting an average 0.79 in CY15 and 0.72 in CY16, from the previous 0.73 and 0.70. "Our long-term assumption is 0.75 AUD:USD, lower than the previous 0.85."
Sterling hit its weakest against the US dollar since the aftermath of the UK's national elections, after a speech by Britain's queen to parliament set in motion a referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union.
Economic reports that show brightening prospects for the US economy are reinvigorating a US dollar rally after a two-month selloff, according to Goldman Sachs Group. Robin Brooks, the bank's New York-based chief currency strategist, wrote: "The market is once again under-positioned on the long US dollar theme and will continue to play catch-up."
Commodities
Ore with 62 per cent content delivered to Qingdao rose 0.5 per cent to $US63.10 a dry metric ton on Wednesday, according to Metal Bulletin Ltd.
Citi cut its long-run thermal coal price forecast to $US80 a tonne and met coal price forecast to $US125 a tonne. "Long-run prices are expected to be set by sustaining costs of already operating mines, rather than by incentive costs for new projects. Primarily this is due to our belief that demand is in structural decline.
Aluminium is in oversupply with a huge stock overhang, and output has continued to rise this year, with the latest industry figures showing daily average production rising to 68,500 tonnes in April. Norwegian producer Norsk Hydro said it would increase aluminium output by 35,000 tonnes per year.
Norway's $US900 billion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, should cut its exposure to the global coal industry and sell stakes in firms that focus on the sector, a key parliamentary committee said.
United States
Broadcom surged after the Wall Street Journal reported the chipmaker was in talks to be bought by Avago Technologies.
Michael Kors dropped to a near three-year low after the handbag maker reported its slowest quarterly revenue growth since going public. That in turn knocked Coach, Kate Spade and Fossil.
Europe
European equity markets have closed sharply higher before a G7 finance meeting focusing on Greece's debt drama, while airlines group IAG neared its takeover of Irish rival Aer Lingus.
Finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of Seven wealthiest nations are meeting in Dresden to discuss the global economy and financial regulation.
Meantime, markets were attentive to reports quoting Greek government sources saying Greece and its creditors were to start drafting a long-awaited agreement on Wednesday that would release much needed bailout loans for the struggling eurozone country.
What happened yesterday
A sell-off on Wall Street spilled over onto the local market on Wednesday, with steep declines across most sectors ending a four-day winning streak for Australian shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 48.1 points, or 0.83pc, to 5725.3.
