Lauren Ryan from Thinktank speaks to Laurence Parker-Brown for our IN60 series. The Inside Adviser
That consumers are influenced heavily by well known, trusted brands comes as no great surprise. What does, though, is that they rate life insurance as the least most important tool in ensuring financial security.
Upbeat start to week – and month – likely for Aussie market
After a strong session for global markets on Friday, Australian shares will take a positive lead into the new week – and month.
The Australian benchmark index, the S&P/ASX 200, added 16.5 points, or 0.2 per cent, on Friday, to 7,309.2, but eased 53 points, or 0.7 per cent over the week. ASX futures trading suggests a rise on Monday after the three major US indices all pushed higher in Friday trading, with the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 272 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 34,098.16; the broader S&P 500 putting on 34.1 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 4,169.48; and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index rising 84.35 points, or 0.7 per cent, to 12,226.58.
For the month, the Dow gained 2.5 per cent, its best month since January, while the S&P 500 index gained 1.5 per cent, and the Nasdaq posted a marginal gain.
Earnings reports from several big technology companies, including Meta, helped the end-of-month mood.
Volatility in the stock market has not bubbled higher, despite the US banking jitters not receding: First Republic Bank has been exploring talks with multiple partners about strategic options, including, potentially, asset sales.
In the bond market, the US 10-year Treasury yield lost 1.9 basis points on Friday, to 3.433 per cent, while the more policy-sensitive 2-year yield was unchanged at 4.02 per cent.
In commodity markets, gold eased US$1.88 to US$1,987.79 an ounce over the weekend, while the benchmark Brent crude oil eased 45 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to US$79.88 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate shed 43 cents, also 0.6 per cent, to US$76.35 a barrel.
The Australian dollar fell to 66.16 US cents from its previous close of 66.29.
