Nasdaq's 1.3% jump lifts the ASX above 8,800. Brent crude nears $100 as Trump warns on Iran. IREN's $2.8B AI deal.
Australian shares are set to open 0.25% higher, pushing the ASX above 8,800 points. The advance follows a tech-led rebound on Wall Street, where the Nasdaq composite rose 1.3%. The S&P 500 added 0.9% and the Dow Jones climbed 0.7%.
All that came despite Brent crude oil surging to a five-week high near $100 a barrel. Trump warned the U.S. is "not finished" attacking Iran, saying American forces would soon strike an underground nuclear compound. Brent settled at $91.50 a barrel, up 2.5%.
Back in Sydney, cloud provider IREN (NASDAQ:IREN) signed multi-year contracts with AI developers worth up to $2.8 billion. The deal lifted IREN shares 9% in the U.S. market. The company does not trade on the ASX.
Earnings season continues. HUB24 reported an $18.9 billion lift in net inflows for fiscal 2026, making it one of the stronger reports so far. South32 jumped 6.6% after a strong quarterly update, with the $5.6 billion Alcoa divestment described as a key milestone. Read more on Alcoa's aluminum bet. Karoon Energy and Santos are among those with updates. Sandfire Resources also reports. Macquarie holds its annual general meeting this morning.
Tabcorp faces a $2.7 million fine for spamming VIP customers.
In commodities, iron ore slipped 1.2% to $98.45 a tonne in Singapore. U.S. natural gas futures sat at $2.88 per gigajoule.
The Australian dollar bought 69.9 U.S. cents.
Westpac releases its June leading index at 10:30 a.m. local time.
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