IG Markets Morning Prices

Good morning,

On Wall St, early gains after strong results from Apple and Morgan Stanley were quickly erased once Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke began his speech. The market slid sharply as Ben Bernanke said the economic outlook remains unusually uncertain and that the Fed remains prepared to act as needed to aid growth even as it gets ready to eventually lift interest rates from almost zero and shrink a record balance sheet.

The tech heavy NASDAQ was the biggest decliner, falling 1.6% while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average gave up 1.3% and 1.1% respectively.

Locally, the ASX 200 is called to open 0.9% lower at 4375 following the afternoon plunge on Wall St.

With all US sectors finishing firmly lower, we're likely to see broad based falls at the open today. The consumer discretionary sector topped the list of decliners, falling 1.8% so we're likely to see significant pressure on local consumer names.

Elsewhere, financials, energy and healthcare were all down 1.6% and are likely to weigh on their respective local sectors. Energy names could see additional pressure after Crude Oil futures fell more than 1.5% since our 4.30pm close yesterday.

The industrial and material sectors could be relative outperformers after only losing 0.2% and 0.3% in US trade. One the London Metals Exchange, all base metals were firmer, up between 0.9% and 2.6%. In normal LSX trade, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton had a good session, rallying 2.4% and 2.5% respectively. BHP Billiton's ADR is calling the locally listed stock to open 0.4% higher at $38.88, however that may be a little optimistic given the overall market lead.

In summary, we're likely to see a tough day's trade, with the market opening firmly lower. With nothing in the way of local economic news, the intraday direction will be determined by Asian trade and overall sentiment. There's a good chance we'll see another quiet intraday trading session.