1 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:06,960 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Fear and Greed Business News Afternoon Report 2 00:00:07,040 --> 00:00:09,920 Speaker 1: for Friday, the twenty seventh of March twenty twenty six. 3 00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:12,480 Speaker 1: I'm Michael Thompson, and every afternoon we've got the five 4 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:14,360 Speaker 1: stories that happened today that you need to know about. 5 00:00:14,680 --> 00:00:16,479 Speaker 1: Let's go a story number one. The S and PA 6 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:19,560 Speaker 1: is X two hundred closed zero point one percent lower 7 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:23,000 Speaker 1: today to eighty five hundred and sixteen points, but the 8 00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:26,160 Speaker 1: boss still finished up one percent for the week. That's 9 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:29,080 Speaker 1: its first weekly gain since the Middle East conflicts began. 10 00:00:29,760 --> 00:00:33,960 Speaker 1: And today's result being down zero point one percent, it's 11 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:37,200 Speaker 1: actually probably better than you would have thought earlier this morning. 12 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:39,839 Speaker 1: It followed a woeful lead in from Wall Street. The 13 00:00:39,920 --> 00:00:43,280 Speaker 1: S and P five hundred overnight fell one point seven percent. 14 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:46,720 Speaker 1: The tech heavy Nasdaq was off two point four percent, 15 00:00:47,120 --> 00:00:50,920 Speaker 1: taking it into technical correction territory, defined as ten percent 16 00:00:51,120 --> 00:00:54,279 Speaker 1: below its recent peak. That all came after comments from 17 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:57,360 Speaker 1: US President Donald Trump that the impact on oil and 18 00:00:57,440 --> 00:00:59,960 Speaker 1: markets hadn't been as bad as he thought. While they priced. 19 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: Brent crude jumped by the most in about a fortnight 20 00:01:02,920 --> 00:01:04,920 Speaker 1: to hit one hundred and eight US dollars a barrel, 21 00:01:05,080 --> 00:01:07,640 Speaker 1: but the President then extended the deadline for a deal 22 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:09,920 Speaker 1: with Iran by ten days, giving a little bit of 23 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:14,320 Speaker 1: breathing space. Locally, we saw energy stocks do well. Santos 24 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:17,040 Speaker 1: was up one point three percent, Ampole rose two percent, 25 00:01:17,160 --> 00:01:21,600 Speaker 1: Woodside edged higher. Coal stocks also gained today. Whitehaven jumped 26 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:26,560 Speaker 1: almost five percent after an upgrade. Technology stocks led the losses. 27 00:01:26,640 --> 00:01:30,800 Speaker 1: Next DC was down nearly eight percent, while financials were 28 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:34,760 Speaker 1: mostly weaker, including declines in NAB and Macquarie. The mining 29 00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 1: stocks certainly helped steady the market. BHP, Rio, Tinto, and 30 00:01:38,640 --> 00:01:41,680 Speaker 1: Fortescue were all higher today. The best on the boss 31 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:45,360 Speaker 1: though today Treasury Wineer States up eight percent, while the 32 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:49,560 Speaker 1: worst performer was Drone Shield, which tumbled nearly thirteen percent 33 00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: after a massive surge earlier in the week. On to 34 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:55,760 Speaker 1: story number two, Now and Prime Minister Anthony abernezi As 35 00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:59,200 Speaker 1: pushed back on criticism from US President Donald Trump, saying 36 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:04,320 Speaker 1: Australia has not received any specific request to provide military 37 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 1: support in the Middle East. Trump overnight singled out Australia 38 00:02:08,320 --> 00:02:11,000 Speaker 1: in the UK for not assisting with efforts to secure 39 00:02:11,160 --> 00:02:14,440 Speaker 1: the Strait of muz which has of course talked about it. 40 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:16,480 Speaker 1: A lot of key shipping route for about twenty percent 41 00:02:16,520 --> 00:02:20,160 Speaker 1: of the world's oil supply. The President said that the 42 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 1: UK didn't want to help us. This is a direct 43 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 1: quote Australia too. Australia was not great. I was a 44 00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:29,440 Speaker 1: little surprised by Australia, But at a press conference today, 45 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:33,360 Speaker 1: the Prime Minister said Australia had acted constructively, pointing to 46 00:02:33,400 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 1: the deployment of a Wedgetail surveillance aircraft and defensive support 47 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:40,520 Speaker 1: for Golf States, while noting that canber was not consulted 48 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:45,240 Speaker 1: before the US joined Israel's military action in Iran. Story 49 00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:48,800 Speaker 1: number three. A wave of shutdowns across Western Australia's major 50 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,840 Speaker 1: LNG plants due to Cyclone NoREL has deepened a global 51 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:57,160 Speaker 1: gas shortage already strained by the Iran War. This cyclone 52 00:02:57,760 --> 00:03:01,080 Speaker 1: was a Category four as it moved across the area. 53 00:03:01,120 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: It appears to have downgraded now to a Category three, 54 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:07,640 Speaker 1: but it is still a very powerful storm. Facilities, including 55 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:12,280 Speaker 1: Chevron's Gorgan and Wheatstone plants, have suspended production. Workers have 56 00:03:12,280 --> 00:03:15,840 Speaker 1: been evacuated from woodsides platforms off the WA coast, with 57 00:03:15,960 --> 00:03:19,560 Speaker 1: disruptions also affecting at much of the company's Northwest Shelf 58 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:22,960 Speaker 1: project it can add as well to the outages that 59 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:26,919 Speaker 1: we talked about earlier in the week, Santos's Darwin LNG 60 00:03:27,120 --> 00:03:30,400 Speaker 1: plant being taken offline due to modifications needed at the 61 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:33,960 Speaker 1: company's new Barossa offshore gas operation. The timing couldn't be 62 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:38,200 Speaker 1: worse because all of these outages combine. Just as Katars 63 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:43,640 Speaker 1: LNG exports remain offline following an Iranian strike. Analysts estimate 64 00:03:43,720 --> 00:03:47,640 Speaker 1: that more than thirty percent of global LNG supply is 65 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:52,680 Speaker 1: now disrupted, driving prices sharply higher and really tightening supply 66 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:57,400 Speaker 1: across Asia and Europe. Story number four. Now Comwealth Bank 67 00:03:57,720 --> 00:04:01,360 Speaker 1: has upgraded its forecast for inflation downgraded its outlook for 68 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:05,520 Speaker 1: the Australian economy as the conflict pushes up those energy prices. 69 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:08,080 Speaker 1: The bank has lowered its growth forecast to one point 70 00:04:08,120 --> 00:04:10,680 Speaker 1: six percent by the end of this year, while lifting 71 00:04:10,720 --> 00:04:13,880 Speaker 1: its inflation outlook to five point four percent by midyear. 72 00:04:14,400 --> 00:04:18,359 Speaker 1: The bank expects unemployment to rise to four point six percent, 73 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:22,240 Speaker 1: while petrol prices remain elevated at around two dollars fifty 74 00:04:22,279 --> 00:04:25,039 Speaker 1: a liter in the near term. The outlook raises the 75 00:04:25,160 --> 00:04:27,960 Speaker 1: risk of further interest rate hikes this year, with Comwealth 76 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:31,320 Speaker 1: Bank tipping another move in May and potentially later in 77 00:04:31,400 --> 00:04:34,960 Speaker 1: twenty twenty six as well. However, little bit of good news, 78 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 1: the bank also expects rate cuts to follow in twenty 79 00:04:38,160 --> 00:04:42,040 Speaker 1: twenty seven, as then the slower growth begins to bite. 80 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:45,880 Speaker 1: And finally, story number five, President Donald Trump's signature will 81 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:48,760 Speaker 1: appear on US dollar notes later this year, in a 82 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: move that the Treasury Department says is tied to celebrations 83 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:55,159 Speaker 1: marking America's two hundred and fiftieth anniversary. This is according 84 00:04:55,160 --> 00:04:57,760 Speaker 1: to The New York Times. The change would make Trump 85 00:04:57,839 --> 00:05:01,279 Speaker 1: the first sitting president to have his signal on US currency, 86 00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:05,400 Speaker 1: replacing the traditional inclusion of the US Treasurer's name at 87 00:05:05,400 --> 00:05:09,279 Speaker 1: Treasury Secretary Scott Besson said the move reflects the significance 88 00:05:09,279 --> 00:05:12,280 Speaker 1: of the anniversary, while critics argue that it represents an 89 00:05:12,360 --> 00:05:17,000 Speaker 1: unusual personalization of national institutions. The move is likely to 90 00:05:17,040 --> 00:05:20,720 Speaker 1: prove a tad controversial, but it may also create collectible 91 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:24,920 Speaker 1: currency if future administrations actually reverse the decision. And that's 92 00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:27,880 Speaker 1: it for the Afternoon Report for Friday, the twenty seventh 93 00:05:27,920 --> 00:05:30,400 Speaker 1: of March. Make sure you're following the podcast and headle 94 00:05:30,440 --> 00:05:33,839 Speaker 1: on to Fearandgreed dot com dot au to sign up 95 00:05:33,839 --> 00:05:37,560 Speaker 1: for our free daily newsletter, I'm Michael Thompson. Enjoy your evening.