Rise and Shine: Everything you need to know before the ASX opens

Good morning everyone and welcome to Rise and Shine on Monday, August 11, 2025. Here’s what you should know before the ASX opens today…

At 7am AEST Monday, ASX futures were down 0.3%, pointing to a soft start for the week.

Here’s what went down last Friday.

Wall Street ends the week at record highs

Friday night in New York was a good one for the bulls.

The Dow rose 0.47%, the S&P 500 added 0.78%, and the Nasdaq jumped 0.98% to clock its second record close in as many days.

Tech was the real crowd-puller.

Investors decided that fresh tariffs weren’t enough to knock the shine off a sector riding a tailwind of strong earnings.

Semiconductor names rallied, mega-cap tech kept climbing, and the broader mood was that rate cuts are coming… and that’s rocket fuel for these stocks.

For investors, this is all feeding into the bigger story: a 90% market bet on a September rate cut after last week’s dud labour data.

And with the next US inflation report dropping Tuesday, the market’s already pricing in a Fed that’s about to take its foot off the brake.

Gold futures touch record high

Gold found itself in a bit of a drama last Friday.

Gold futures in New York flirted with an intraday record of US$4,490 an ounce, before retreating to around US$3,400.

The cause was tariff confusion.

Reports surfaced that Swiss gold bars – the 1-kilo and 100-ounce kind that underpin much of the Comex market – weren’t exempt from Trump’s new 39% reciprocal tariff.

“The move is significant because 1-kilo and 100-ounce gold bars form the backbone of much of the gold trading activity in the United States,” said Ryan McIntyre from Sprott.

The White House now says it will issue an executive order to “clarify misinformation” about the tariffing of gold.

But the mere idea was enough to send traders scrambling and inject a dose of volatility into a market that was supposed to be a safe haven.

For Aussie goldies, this kind of tariff noise can be a short-term gift. Uncertainty tends to push punters into precious metals.

Altcoins pop

Over in crypto land, Friday brought a little alt-season spark.

Ripple announced that it was buying Rail, a stablecoin-based global payments platform, in a US$200 million deal expected to close by year-end.

That lit a fire under XRP, which jumped as much as 10%. Ethereum and Solana also surged higher.

This is a reminder that while Bitcoin might be the headline act, the side stage can move just as wildly, and sometimes more profitably, on a good story.

This week’s agenda

It’s a big week ahead.

At home, the RBA meets Tuesday, and CBA economists reckon they will resume cutting rates with a quarter-point trim to 3.6%.

Aussie inflation has cooled to a 4-year low, core CPI is sitting neatly in the middle of the target range, and the jobs market is softening.

Speaking of jobs, Thursday’s ABS data is tipped to show 20,000 new positions in July, keeping unemployment rate at 4.3%.

In the US, Tuesday’s CPI will be the headline act.

Economists expect a 0.2% monthly rise, pushing the annual rate to 2.8% from 2.7%.

It’s one of three US inflation updates this week, all of which will feed into the mood heading into Jackson Hole later this month.

And on the ASX, reporting season rolls on with around 50 companies, including market heavyweights CBA, Cochlear, JB Hi-Fi, and AGL.

Commodity/forex/crypto market prices

What got you talking

Also in the news…

There are signs lithium could be emerging from its wintery hibernation, with spring on the horizon as prices rise thanks to Chinese mine shutdowns and continued EV and battery storage growth.

Global exposure is no longer a luxury, it’s a necessity for smart investors, writes Nigel Green. And it’s not just about reducing risk, it’s about opportunity.

Greatland Resources (ASX:GGP) responds to burning questions on Telfer guidance and Chinese group puts $50m into lithium name Liontown.

Trading halts

Beacon Minerals (ASX:BCN) – drilling results at Lady Ida Project
Beonic (ASX:BEO) – cap raise
Etherstack (ASX:ESK) – material contract signing
Everest Metals Corporation (ASX:EMC) – cap raise

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.