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US equities rallied late in the trading session following President Donald Trump’s comments to CBS News that he thinks the war against Iran could soon end. The headlines steadied global markets and all three major benchmarks closed in the green.

The Dow Jones gained 0.5%, the S&P500 up 0.8% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq advanced 1.4%, all marking impressive turnarounds from the losses seen earlier in the trading session.

What to watch today:

Following global markets, the Australian market is set to rebound, with the SPI futures suggesting a 2.15% rise at the open this morning, after a $90 billion sell-off yesterday.

In commodities,

• Crude oil is in the red, however back up to US$85.08 per barrel, after G7 finance ministers said the group is ready to release oil from strategic reserves if needed.
• The price of gold has fallen to $5,133 per ounce as a firmer US dollar and diminishing expectations of the Fed’s rate cuts offset safe-haven demand from the escalating Middle East conflict.
• And iron ore is in the green at US$102.90 per tonne.

In economic news,

• Westpac is set to release its March consumer confidence report at 10:30am AEDT
• And NAB will release the February business confidence and conditions reports at 11:30am AEDT.
• Overseas, investors are waiting on China’s latest trade data.
• And AU$1.00 is buying US$0.71.

Trading ideas:

• Bell Potter maintain a Buy rating on Nickel Industries (ASX:NIC). While the conflict in the Middle East is resulting in an immediate market impact to key input costs and the duration is uncertain, Bell Potter’s view is that while margins may be impacted, NIC is insulated due to its diversified nickel product suite. Their 12-month price target is $1.45 and at the current share price of $0.88, this implies 64.8% share price growth in a year.