Live: ASX to rise ahead of inflation figures, despite Wall Street's tech sell-off

live Markets live: ASX to rise ahead of inflation figures, despite Wall Street's tech sell-off The Australian share market is expected to rise despite a major sell-off across US tech, AI and semiconductor stocks, which resulted in steep losses on Wall Street. The ABS will release its May inflation data, which will be impacted by sharp falls in petrol and diesel prices. See how the trading day unfolds on our blog. Disclaimer: This blog is not intended as investment advice. Submit a comment or question Live updates Wed 24 Jun 2026 at 7:35am Market snapshot - ASX futures: +0.4% to 8,789 points - ASX 200 (Tuesday close): -0.3% to 8,787 points - Australian dollar: -1.2% to 69.16 US cents - Wall Street: Dow Jones (-0.1%), S&P 500 (-1.4%), Nasdaq (-2.2%) - Europe: Stoxx 600 (-0.7%), DAX (-1%), FTSE (-0.1%) - Spot gold: -1.9% to $US4,110/ounce - Brent crude: -1.3% to $US76.93/barrel - Iron ore: +0.1% at $US99.90/tonne - Bitcoin: -3.1% to $US62,389 Prices current around 7:30am AEST New: Filters Choose what information you see below by using filters Key Event Wed 24 Jun 2026 at 8:00am 'Confusopoly' blamed as power bill messages befuddle consumers Across large parts of Australia — from Queensland to Victoria and South Australia — thousands of people have received notices from their electricity providers informing them of upcoming price hikes. That's despite the default offer — set by the Australian Energy Regulator in Queensland, NSW and SA — falling in many markets. In some cases, households are being whacked with hikes to their daily supply charge of more than 60%. These price increases have left many of those consumers angry at what they say is a contradictory and confusing market. For more on this important development, here's the story by Daniel Mercer and Olivia Sanders: Key Event Wed 24 Jun 2026 at 7:46am ASX to open higher despite Wall Street's tech sell-off The Australian share market is likely to start its day slightly higher, with ASX futures up 0.4% this morning. That's despite a global tech sell-off, which resulted in steep losses on Wall Street overnight. On a day like this, it certainly helps that Australia doesn't have much in the way of huge tech companies. Instead, the local share market is dominated by banks and miners. Semiconductor, chips and computer memory stocks like Sandisk (-13.6%), Micron (-13.2%), Marvell (-9.4%) and Nvidia (-4.1%) It appears investors are getting increasingly worried about the sharp rise in debt-funded AI spending, particularly with the US Federal Reserve recently adopting a more "hawkish" tone — and more likely to lift interest rates by the end of the year. The Dow Jones index slipped by 0.1%, while the S&P 500 dropped 1.4% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell by 2.2%. Key Event Wed 24 Jun 2026 at 7:35am Fuel excise discount will have significant impact on today's Australian inflation data Good morning, and welcome to the ABC's finance blog. I'll be guiding you through the latest market action for the next few hours. Locally, the "big news" today will probably be the latest inflation figures, covering the month of May. During that period, oil prices fell sharply on expectations that the US and Iran would soon sign some kind of agreement to de-escalate their months-long war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The Reserve Bank will no doubt be scrutinising these figures to decide whether to keep interest rates on hold — or announce a fourth interest rate hike by the end of this year. It's the only thing the RBA can really do to try to slow down the recent cost-of-living increases. Here's what economists are expecting, according to a poll conducted by Reuters: - Inflation could rise by 4.3% in the year to May — the median result of that survey - This would be a slight increase over the previous month's result of 4.2%, and well above the RBA's inflation target range of 2.5%. However, the monthly result will be interesting because: - Inflation is estimated to have fallen by 0.4% since the previous month (April). So essentially, that's deflation! - However, there is a big disparity in the poll, with economists' predictions ranging from a 0.8% drop to a 0.2% rise in monthly inflation. - The Albanese government's temporary 50% fuel excise discount, which amounts to roughly a 32-cent-per-litre reduction, is likely to be a major reason if we see monthly deflation in May. The cut to the fuel excise was due to expire by June 30, but the government has extended it until August 2 — albeit at a lower discount (25%), which amounts to a 16-cent-per-litre reduction in petrol and diesel. Anyway, sit back, grab a coffee (or tea), and I'll be back with more updates shortly!