Company Interview / the open: oil surges 🛢️ ASX to climb

The local market is set to open higher this morning with ASX futures up 0.3%. This comes despite global equities being mostly lower overnight, while gold fell on profit taking. 

Wall Street's main indices fell to one-week lows as another wave of AI‑related spending announcements by mega‑cap tech companies unnerved investors. Apple reported after the bell, beating quarterly revenue estimates as iPhone demand surged and acquired Q.ai. 

The US trade deficit widened sharply in November as AI-driven imports surged. And the number of Americans filing jobless claims fell last week, suggesting layoffs remain low, but tepid hiring is stoking concern about job security. 

Oil prices hit a five-month high amid fears US action against Iran could disrupt global crude supplies. The US dollar hovered near four-year lows, while the Australian dollar hit a three-year high on rate-hike expectations and policy uncertainty.