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Wall St closed slightly higher overnight as the escalating tensions in the Middle East impacted markets. The Dow Jones added 0.09%, the S&P 500 rose just 0.01% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.08%.

Iran’s attack on Israel has impacted investor enthusiasm on Wall St for the new trading month and quarter, with trader uncertainty set to continue following Israel starting ground operations in Lebanon.

Over in Europe, markets closed mixed, following in a similar trend to the US. The STOXX600 remained flat overnight with losses led by the utilities sector falling 1.8%, while oil and gas stocks jumped 1.5% following supply concerns in the Middle East. Germany’s DAX fell 0.25%, the French CAC gained 0.05% and over in the UK the FTSE 100 rose 0.17%.

Locally yesterday, the ASX200 closed 0.13% lower with the majority of sectors closing in the red. Losses were led by the consumer discretionary and information technology sector which fell by 1.73% and 1.58% respectively. This was offset by the energy sector which rose by 2.35% yesterday.

What to watch today:

• The Australian share market is set to open slightly higher, with the SPI futures suggesting a rise of 0.04% at market open this morning.
• On the commodities front this morning,
  • Oil is trading 1.71% higher at 71 US dollars and 2 cents a barrel following supply disruptions in the Middle East.
  • Gold is trading 0.07% lower at 2658 US dollars an ounce and iron ore is trading a massive 15.89% higher at 108 US dollars and 74 cents a tonne as China relaxed rules for homebuyers and moved to lower mortgage rates to support the property market, showing there is a potential rebound in demand for construction materials.

Trading Ideas:

• Bell Potter has initiated coverage on Codan Limited (ASX: CDA) with a hold rating and has a 12-month price target of $16.90. Codan is an Australian technology company that develops and manufactures innovative, mission critical communications and detection technology. CDA’s primary customers include defence, government departments, major corporates, small scale miners and individual consumers. With a current price target of $16.33 the hold rating is recommended.
• And Trading Central has identified a bearish signal in EVT Limited (ASX:EVT), indicating that the stock price may fall from the close of $10.53 to the range of $8.80-$9.20, on a pattern formed over 15 days, according to the standard principles of technical analysis.