Investors to keep a watch on virus spike

AUSTRALIAN shares are expected to kick off in the black on Monday after fresh hopes for a coronavirus treatment buoyed global markets.

Investors in Europe and the US on Friday cheered remarks from the head of German biotech firm BioNTech that a vaccine candidate would be ready for regulatory review by the end of the year.

A positive announcement from Gilead Sciences in the US about clinical trials on remdesivir, the first drug shown to be relatively effective in treating COVID-19, also lifted confidence.

Australia’s benchmark ASX 200 index closed 36.3 points down at 5919.2 points on Friday but the futures index on Sunday was pointing to a 90point rise to start the week.

Burrell Stockbroking senior analyst Bruce McLeary said the biggest issue for the domestic market remained the lockdown in Victoria, with that state contributing 20 per cent to Australia’s GDP.

“The daily rate of new infections (particularly in Victoria) is being closely watched by the market,” he said.

Victoria confirmed 273 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday.

Business Council of Australia chief executive Jennifer Westacott said the country needed better systems to handle outbreaks given a vaccine might be two years away.

“We have to find a way of living with this and keeping the momentum going to open up the economy because if not, we’re going to sap confidence and sap jobs,” she said on Sky News.

“We cannot eliminate this (virus) without a vaccine, we are a long way from that, we have to live with it therefore we have to get the systems right to manage these local outbreaks.”

In New York, the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rocketed to another record on Friday, up 0.7 per cent to 10,617.44 points.