Company Interview / the open: ASX to follow Wall Street lower

A decline in Wall Street is expected to exert downward pressure on Australian stocks, as investors adopt a cautious stance ahead of the Federal Reserve's upcoming monetary policy decision. Investors are closely monitoring the potential impact of President Donald Trump's tariff policies. U.S. equities declined, with megacap stocks dropping to their lowest levels since September. Nvidia Corp. fell 3.4%, despite unveiling plans to extend its AI prevalence with new robots and desktop systems. Market sentiment was further dampened by data revealing rising import prices. Meanwhile, Treasuries saw modest gains following a successful $13 billion sale of 20-year bonds, and gold surged to a new all-time high. Sarepta Therapeutics Inc was the largest faller overnight, with shares plunging more than 21% after the company revealed a patient with Duchenne muscular dystrophy died following treatment with its gene therapy ELEVIDYS. The Aussie is at US66.3 cents, whilst the US remains lower against the Euro. Bitcoin is trading at around $82,000. Locally, notable companies trading ex-dividend today are Helia Group, Genesis Energy, and Peet Ltd.