Gold has turned slightly lower as the US dollar pared losses, with investors grabbing profits after the metal jumped more than one per cent following unexpectedly flat US retail sales data.
Oil has risen two per cent, clinching its biggest weekly gains since April, after a short covering rally was triggered by comments from Saudi Arabia's oil minister in the previous session about possible action to help stabilize the market.
The share market has closed only modestly higher, despite US markets hitting record levels overnight, weighed down by weakness from market heavyweights Westpac and Telstra.
The Australian dollar has slipped against the greenback on rising expectations that US interest rates will go up later this year, and ahead of key Chinese and US data.
Oil prices have jumped the most in a month rising more than four per cent after comments from the Saudi oil minister about possible action to stabilize prices triggered a round of buying and the International Energy Agency forecast crude markets would tighten in the second half of 2016.
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Gold has eased below $US1,350 an ounce as the dollar rises, and the Dow and S&P 500 touch record intraday highs, though uncertainty over the outlook for US monetary policy prevented further losses for the metal.
The Australian dollar has rallied, with analysts tipping it to hit 77 US cents, as global risk appetite increases and after the greenback fell on weak US business productivity data.
Gold prices have edged higher as the US dollar slipped lower against a basket of currencies and concerns over the global economic outlook trumped some expectations that US Federal Reserve could raise interest rates this year.
Labor and banks head for collisionLabor leader Bill Shorten is using banks' reporting of profits to step up his campaign for a royal commission, demanding that the ‘‘greed
The Australian share market has closed slightly higher, with the big banks holding up the bourse in light trading following a weak lead from US markets
Gold has steadied after falling to a one-week low as downward momentum from stronger-than-expected US jobs figures lost steam, with concerns over negative global economic sentiment lending support.
Oil prices are more than two per cent higher amid renewed speculation that OPEC will try to restrain output, easing oversupply worries that's pressured the market to three-month lows.
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Investor interest in energy and financial stocks drove the Australian sharemarket higher on Monday, ahead of a flurry of company results this week as earnings season gets under way in earnest.
