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Wall St has closed higher as Apple and Amazon are set to release their earnings reports after the bell. The Dow Jones closed 0.97% in the green, the S&P 500 rose 1.25% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rallied 1.30%.

In terms of US stocks, tech shares rallied with Apple and Amazon both jumping 1% and 2% respectively. Both are set to release their earnings after market close.

US unemployment data is also set to be released later tonight with a forecast of 3.7%, the same as its previous result.

Over in Europe, markets closed lower after the Bank of England held interest rates steady. The STOXX600 closed half a percent lower, led by mining stocks which fell 1.3%. Germany’s DAX lost 0.26%, the French CAC fell 0.89% and over in the UK the FTSE100 ended the day 0.11% in the red.

Locally yesterday, markets closed 1.20% lower with all major sectors finishing in the red. Losses were led by the financial and real estate sectors of 1.81% and 1.67% respectively.

What to watch today:

• The Australian share market is set to open higher, with the SPI futures suggesting a rise of 0.36% at market open this morning.
• On the commodity front this morning,
  • Oil is trading down 2.32% to US$74.10 cents a barrel, following the OPEC committee confirming that members are maintaining production cuts.
  • Gold is trading up 0.90% to US$2055 an ounce, following the release of the latest economic data coming out of the US.
  • And iron ore is trading 2.21% lower at US$133 a tonne.

Trading Ideas:

• Bell Potter maintains a buy rating on Regal Partners (ASX:RPL), despite slightly decreasing its price target. The buy rating is maintained by Bell Potter, following net inflows in the last quarter of $108 million, largely from the launch of the Regal Resources High Conviction Fund and the Regal Partners Private Fund. With these figures and the company adding new strategies, RPL has become more diversified, hence reducing risk.
• And trading central has identified a bullish signal in Hansen Technologies (ASX:HSN), indicating that the stock price may rise from the close of $5.18 to the range of $5.47-$5.55 on a pattern formed over 38 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis.