Company Interview / the open: US Jobless claims fall 💼 ASX set to slip

The local market is expected to open slightly lower, with ASX futures pointing down 0.15%. This comes after what was a fairly strong session on Wall Street, with tech stocks leading the charge. 

Reporting season continued, with Goldman Sachs stock rising, after reporting strong EPS growth in Q4 2025. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley also jumped with the wealth management giant posting $8.4 billion in net revenue in the most recent quarter, up from $7.5 billion a year earlier. 

US weekly jobless claims fell unexpectedly with claims dropping to 198,000. Economists are still calling it a “lowe-hire, low-fire” jobs market. In the UK, GDP rose 0.3% in November, marking the strongest month for growth since June. 

Oil prices stalled last night, after a very strong week, with Brent settling down around 4% ending a five-day streak. US President Donald Trump said the crackdown on protesters in Iran is easing, ultimately calming concerns about supply.

The US dollar rose, whilst the Australian dollar is trading at US67 cents.