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COVID-19 vaccine hopes; electric car demand picking up in China; and the Tech tech-takeover- kicked Wall Street back into buying the dip and rebound mode. Sentiment got a boost when AstraZeneca resumed phase three trials following a halt due to safety reasons. This saw the Nasdaq rise 1.9%, the S&P500 gain 1.3% and the Dow lift 1.2%,

Commodities 

• Oil fell 0.2% – US$37.26
• Gold, gained US$17.20 or 0.8% to US$1,965.
• The Aussie dollar got a bit of a boost overnight, rising to 72.91 US, which is its highest level in almost three weeks, as the USD continues to come under pressure.

What to watch today?

• The focus will be on the RBA meeting minutes – which is expected to pave out how much bond buying the central bank has conducted since August in a bid to stimulate the economy.
• The futures are suggesting the Aussie market will pull back 0.2% following the 0.7% gain yesterday.
• News Corp (ASX:NWS), Ingham’s Group (ASX:ING), Plato Income Maximiser (ASX:PL8), Pro-Pac Packaging (ASX:PPG), CML Group (ASX:CGR) & Data#3 (ASX:DTL) all go ex- dividend today transferring the dividend right to shareholders, so they could see some selling.

Looking at Trading ideas that may be worth a look:

• Macquarie’s (ASX:MQG) yesterday lowered its expected NPAT to $950 million for the first half of this financial year. Overnight, Bell Potter maintained the bank as a buy with a $135.00 target, while UBS reiterated MQG as a hold.
• Aroa Biosurgery (ASX:ARX), the soft tissue regenerative company for hernia and reconstructive surgery, had its buy rating reiterated by Bell Potter with a $2.10 , implying 61% upside from yesterday’s close of $1.29.
• Saracen Mineral (ASX:SAR) may be worth a look, as Trading Central’s data tells us that SAR may rise to $6.40 – $6.70 following yesterday’s close of $5.24 in the next 29 days, according to standard technical analysis.
• Sezzle (ASX:SZL) – its shares may end their downtrend going off Trading Central’s standard technical analysis. SZL also expects sales to hit $1 billion by the end of this year.