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

Good morning everyone and welcome to Rise and Shine on Tuesday, October 28, 2025. Here’s what you should know before the ASX opens today…

At 7am AEST Tuesday, ASX futures were down 0.4%, pointing to a sluggish start for local stocks.

Here’s what went down on last night while we were sleeping…

Wall Street hits the dance floor

The Dow was up 0.71%, S&P 1.23%, and the Nasdaq jumped 1.86%.

Markets rallied as Trump said he expects to “come away” with a deal when he meets Xi in South Korea this week.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent fanned the optimism, telling reporters there’s a “successful framework” for the leaders to discuss.

The optimism was thick enough to push all three major US indices toward record territory again, just as Big Tech gets ready to spill its guts in Q3 earnings.

Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta report Wednesday (Thursday AEDT), followed by Apple and Amazon on Thursday (Friday AEDT).

Apple climbed 2% overnight, inching toward a US$4 trillion market cap, potentially joining Nvidia and Microsoft in the trillionaires’ club.

Amazon, on the other hand, is proving that cutting costs is the new growth strategy, reportedly axing 30,000 corporate jobs, its biggest layoff since 2022.

Robinhood jumped 4% after analysts at Compass Point raised their price target to US$161, thanks to surging revenue from crypto and its new “prediction markets”, where you can bet on everything from footy finals to Fed cuts.

Meanwhile, Qualcomm shocked the chip world, rallying 22% at one point after unveiling its AI200 chips aimed squarely at Nvidia’s turf.

Even Nvidia added 3%, perhaps just relieved someone else finally joined the race.

The Fed, the chair, and the guessing game

Traders are now fully pricing in a quarter-point rate cut when the Fed wraps up its meeting Thursday AEDT.

The US government shutdown means policymakers are flying blind without jobs data, but when has that ever stopped them?

As former Kansas City Fed boss Esther George put it, they’re relying on “other sources of information,” which probably translates to vibes and the Bloomberg terminals.

Treasury Secretary Bessent said the shortlist for the next Fed chair is down to five names – including Chris Waller, Kevin Warsh, and BlackRock’s bond chief Rick Rieder.

Trump, of course, will make the final call.

Gold loses its sparkle

Gold fell off a cliff, slipping 3% to below US$4,000 an ounce in its worst rout in over a decade.

The same traders who swore it was going to “the moon” last week are now blaming “positive trade vibes” for the sell-off.

Spot gold hit as low as US$3,990 as the debasement trade ran out of gas.

“Gold is going through a long overdue correction,” said Saxo Bank’s Ole Hansen.

ASX goldies will come under pressure today.

Bitcoin flexes again

Bitcoin clawed back just below US$115,000 overnight, proving once again that crypto never really dies.

October’s historically been a strong month for Bitcoin, and with Wall Street in risk-on mode, digital gold’s back in the conversation.

And finally…

Back home, Aussie investors will keep one eye on Liontown Resources and Nickel Industries’ quarterly results, plus AGMs from Austal, Credit Corp, and CSL.

Across the pond, New Zealand drops jobs data at 8:45am.

In the US tonight, UnitedHealth, PayPal, and UPS report  – the warm-up act before the Magnificent Seven step up later this week.

The “Magnificent Seven” now make up almost a quarter of the S&P 500’s market cap.

Which, in the author’s view, means US markets aren’t really an index anymore, they’re more like a tech ETF.

Commodity/forex/crypto market prices

What got you talking

Also in the news…

Guy on Rocks: Does Sweden have a hunger for yellowcake?

The three fears stalking investors right now – but why calm heads will prevail.

Stock Tips: Analysts turn to safe hands and travel plans in rough seas.

Kristie Batten: Fortescue-backed Magmatic making moves in two major gold fields.

Health Check: Cashed-up clinical-stage biotechs are poised to go all the way.

Trading halts

Ballard Mining (ASX:BM1) – strategic placement and new exploration target
Breakthrough Minerals (ASX:BTR) – mineral project acquisition and cap raise
Cash Converters (ASX:CCV) – cap raise
Critica (ASX:CRI) – metallurgical test work results
Fin Resources (ASX:FIN) – material acquisition and cap raise
Lion Rock Minerals (ASX:LRM) – exploration results from Minta Rutile Project
Motio (ASX:MXO) – cap raise
Mount Hope Mining (ASX:MHM) – cap raise
Star Minerals (ASX:SMS) – cap raise
Whitebark Energy (ASX:WBE) – Warro Project update and cap raise

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Ausgold is a Stockhead advertiser, it did not sponsor this article.

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