Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
A listener production. The Aussie market extended its losing streak on Tuesday. And why did South Korea's market slump and then stop trading for 20 minutes today? Good afternoon. I'm Steve Daglian. It's Tuesday, the 23rd of June. Welcome to the ComSec Market Update.
Chapter 2: What were the recent trends in the Australian share market?
Well, good afternoon, everyone. Hope you've had a fantastic day. It's been quite an eventful session for the local share market and we've headed lower. We're down by around a third of a percent at the time of recording this afternoon. And once again, we've had both gains and losses over the course of the day. It has been a bit of a trend now over the past week or so.
So at the best levels today, we're actually up by 0.4%. And at the worst levels, we were down by a little over 0.4%. So we finished not too far from the low, at least at the time of recording. Now, it means that we're on a four-day losing streak where the market has shed about 2% of its value. But what's important to remember is that it follows a 4% gain over the prior four days.
And we did hit a five-week high just last Wednesday as well. So we're seeing markets being pulled in different directions at the moment. They seem to be falling when there are concerns about escalating US-Iran tensions and then lifting on better news amongst other things.
So over the past day, it's true that signs have been mostly encouraging in the Middle East, but markets, I think, are not getting ahead of themselves. Negotiators are set to continue peace talks over the course of the week in Switzerland, and we know that the mood can change pretty quickly on that front as well.
Also importantly, we've got two very important pieces of data out in Australia over the coming days, one tomorrow on Aussie inflation and then an update on jobs growth, which will be out on Thursday. And they're both very important considerations for the Reserve Bank when it decides what to do with interest rates.
So basically, the hotter these numbers are, the more likely markets are going to start potentially getting nervous around what this means for higher interest rates. US markets returned from a long weekend last night, and they were mixed. We had the Dow Jones actually finishing a little higher, the S&P 500 actually went backwards, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq was one of the big losers, down 1.3%.
But futures are also pointing to pretty heavy losses on the open in the United States tonight as well. So that seems to have rubbed off onto our market as well with tech stocks amongst the worst performers on the local share market. Now, South Korea's stock market deserves a mention today because it is down 8% from a record.
But basically, this decline triggered a trading halt, which means that trading in the South Korean market was paused for a full 20 minutes. Now, for context, South Korea's KOSPI index has doubled in value on the market this year. That's since January 2026. Just to compare, the Aussie market is up less than 1% this year, and the US market is up around 9% this year.
So there have been demand for chips that it sells as being one of the key drivers, and it's a very concentrated market. Even though the US market... is concentrated, I guess, when it comes to tech stocks, about half of its market is made up of technology and communication services. Our market is concentrated in the form of resources and financials, accounting for about half of our market.
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Chapter 3: How are Middle East tensions affecting global markets?
We've got a few decliners on the market, though. Stocks like Aluka, which is down by around 10% today, so a pretty heavy decline from the rare earth minerals miner. Now, Aluka fell despite announcing a multi-year offtake agreement for the supply of magnet rare earth minerals to a mystery company. global automotive company, which it said is a globally recognized name.
And it said that the agreement is to deliver product, which will start in 2028 and would initially last for a four-year term. And that would represent about 10% of its planned production at the time that it has commitments for overseas. It also said that the minimum contract value over the four-year period would be about US$155 million, but it would also depend on market prices at the time.
So LUCA has rallied about 25% year-to-date, which is roughly 30 times the gains we've seen across the broader market so far this year at least. WiseTech has been another big mover on the market. It was up a little earlier in the day, but now finds itself in negative territory again. So it means it's falling for a fourth consecutive day. It's down 4.3%. It's fallen about 25% over that run.
Most of those declines actually came through yesterday when it sank to a five-year low. Now, this was on news that the Australian Federal Police was launching an investigation into the founder, Richard White. Today, WiseTech responded to the media commentary with a short notice or statement rather, saying that the company isn't aware of any investigation as outlined in the article.
And Mr. White also denied the claims made regarding human trafficking. So WiseTech shares still under pressure despite that. But outside of that, certainly a sea of red on the market. We're also seeing a few gold miners, the likes of Resolute and Genesis Minerals are coming under quite a bit of pressure. Outside of that, I mean, we've had a bit going on today on the economic front.
Something that received attention was a weekly update on consumer confidence, which asked a bunch of people how they're feeling about their finances and their perceptions about the economy as well.
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Chapter 4: What upcoming economic data should investors watch for?
More people saying now is a good time to actually buy a major household item. Consumer confidence rose about 2% as well. I think the fact that interest rates were kept on hold last week was helpful. We also had the New South Wales budget handed down today, which is the last full year budget before the state election, which is expected to be held in March next year.
So temporary cost of living relief received most attention. So for drivers, it included $100 off car registrations. And then for public transport users, a freeze on fare rises for a 12-month period. But if we look forward from here tonight, we're going to have a few interesting readings on how manufacturing is faring at the moment, both in Europe and also in the United States.
So that will get attention. Tomorrow, it's all going to be about inflation. So at 11.30am Sydney time, Eastern Standard Time, we're going to get the latest read for the month of May. And this is, as I said earlier, a very important consideration for what the Reserve Bank thinks about interest rates. So we're a full seven weeks out now from the next interest rate decision.
So of course, from now to then, a lot can change, but tomorrow will be a very important piece of data that could very well move markets over the course of the afternoon. Now, the Aussie dollar is back below 70 US cents. So, the US dollar has picked up. It buys around 69.5 US cents. That's for one Aussie at this stage. Anyway, on that note, have a great evening, everyone.
Make sure you tune into the morning podcast tomorrow with James, who gets you up to speed with everything happening in global markets. See you later. This podcast is prepared, approved and distributed in Australia by Commonwealth Securities Limited, ABN 60067254399, AFSL 238814. The information does not take into consideration your objectives, financial situation or needs.
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Chapter 5: How did the US markets perform after the long weekend?
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