Bourse tipped to suffer sharp fall

THE local sharemarket is poised for a sharp fall on Monday morning, with futures pricing in a drop of 1.5 per cent ahead of a week headlined by economic growth figures and corporate earnings reports.

At the close of offshore trading, S&P/ASX200 futures were suggesting a fall of 1.5 per cent to 7198 points, after elevated US inflation figures hit Wall Street sentiment.

Locally, however, national accounts data due on Wednesday will be pivotal for the market’s outlook.

Economists surveyed by Bloomberg are tipping seasonally adjusted GDP growth of 2.7 per cent in the year to December, sharply down from 5.9 per cent in the September quarter.

Price and wages figures would garner more focus than usual as investors hunt for clues to the Reserve Bank’s interest rates trajectory, NAB chief economist Alan Oster said.

“Slowing growth will likely be the first signal the economy is cooling in response to rate rises alongside the moderation in global inflation,” Mr Oster said. “Therefore, activity partials – particularly for consumer spending – will be important in assessing the flowthrough in policy over coming months.”

On Wall Street, stocks finished an ugly session decisively lower on Friday after another round of hot inflation data exacerbated worries over monetary policy.

The Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation, the personal consumption expenditures price index, rose 5.4 per cent last month from January 2022.

Locally on Monday, as corporate earnings season wraps up, the biggest names to report include Woodside, Lynas, Appen, Liberty Financial Group and Kogan.