SYDNEY, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set for a cautious start on Friday amid persistent worries about global economic health, though a late rally on Wall Street may put a cap on any losses.
December share index futures stood 1.6 percent lower at 3,970 at 2123 GMT, but only a 4.4 point discount to the 3,974.4 close in the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index on Thursday.
U.S. stocks clawed back from five-year lows on Thursday, led by a bounce in energy and healthcare stocks after oil recovered from a 16-month trough and top pharmaceutical companies posted reassuring earnings. See for a full report.
Miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto may be a focus after BHP got conditional backing from South African regulators for its plan to buy rival Rio (See). BHP also warned that market volatility that has hit shares in the sector would not end soon.
Investors will also be watching for comments on earnings outlooks from building materials firm Boral and paper maker PaperlinX Ltd, which will hold annual shareholders meetings.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX-50 index rose 0.9 percent to 2,833.8 by 2128 GMT.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2134 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 908.11 1.26% 11.330 USD/JPY 97.73 -0.11% -0.110
10-YR US TSY YLD 3.6877 -
0.090 SPOT GOLD 720 -1.05% -7.650 US CRUDE 69.42 4.00% 2.670 DOW JONES 8691.25 2.02% 172.04 ASIA ADRS 91.99 0.23% 0.21
* Wall St rebounds on energy, drug strength
* Oil rises as OPEC weighs supply cut
* Gold hits 13-month low on fund liquidity concern
* Copper ends off 3-yr low, pares losses with stocks[MET/L]
For a summary of business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on.
($1=A$1.49) . ng COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
December share index futures stood 1.6 percent lower at 3,970 at 2123 GMT, but only a 4.4 point discount to the 3,974.4 close in the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index on Thursday.
U.S. stocks clawed back from five-year lows on Thursday, led by a bounce in energy and healthcare stocks after oil recovered from a 16-month trough and top pharmaceutical companies posted reassuring earnings. See for a full report.
Miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto may be a focus after BHP got conditional backing from South African regulators for its plan to buy rival Rio (See). BHP also warned that market volatility that has hit shares in the sector would not end soon.
Investors will also be watching for comments on earnings outlooks from building materials firm Boral and paper maker PaperlinX Ltd, which will hold annual shareholders meetings.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX-50 index rose 0.9 percent to 2,833.8 by 2128 GMT.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2134 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 908.11 1.26% 11.330 USD/JPY 97.73 -0.11% -0.110
10-YR US TSY YLD 3.6877 -
0.090 SPOT GOLD 720 -1.05% -7.650 US CRUDE 69.42 4.00% 2.670 DOW JONES 8691.25 2.02% 172.04 ASIA ADRS 91.99 0.23% 0.21
* Wall St rebounds on energy, drug strength
* Oil rises as OPEC weighs supply cut
* Gold hits 13-month low on fund liquidity concern
* Copper ends off 3-yr low, pares losses with stocks[MET/L]
For a summary of business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on.
($1=A$1.49) . ng COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.