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And now into the Morning Bell. Wall Street closed higher over night as investors assess rising geopolitical tensions caused by the conflict between Hamas and Israel and the potential ramifications for the energy market. Defence and oil related companies rallied on Monday amid investor fears of a prolonged period of war in Israel. The Dow Jones ended the day 0.59% in the green, with the S&P500 trading 0.63% higher and the tech-heavy Nasdaq also rallying 0.39%.

In Europe overnight, markets closed lower as investors in the region also assessed the impact of geopolitical turmoil in the Middle East. The STOXX600 fell 0.3%, weighed down by travel and leisure stocks falling 2.4%, while oil and gas stocks rose 2.9% on the rising price of oil. Germany’s DAX fell 0.67% on Monday, the French CAC lost 0.55% and, in the UK, the FTSE100 closed just 0.03% lower. Shares in oil and gas company Energean tanked more than 20% on Monday after the company announced that supply, production and work offshore would continue after the attack on Israel where it operates in the northern region of the country that is not currently under attack.

The local market opened the new trading week on a positive note with the ASX200 adding 0.23% at the closing bell on Monday buoyed by the energy sector jumping 3.04% as the price of oil rose 4% on geopolitical tensions escalating in the Middle East. The gold miners also rallied yesterday amid a spike in the price of the precious commodity which led to De Grey Mining jumping 8.07% while Capricorn Metals added 5.35%, and Newcrest Mining lifted 4.74%.

Global markets have rallied since Friday on stronger-than-expected jobs data out in the US providing further support for a soft-landing expectation over a recession in the high interest rate environment.

Popular Mexican fast food chain Guzman y Gomez is reportedly eyeing an IPO in Australia at the end of next year with two CEOs at the helm according to founder Steven Marks. Hilton Brett has been appointed co-chief executive officer of GYG alongside Mr Marks who founded the company in Newtown in 2005.

Magellan Financials’ share price took a further hit yesterday, with the funds manager closing the day down over 7% as investors continue piling out, on the back of the company’s September trading update indicating a further $4bn in outflows were realised during the month taking total funds under management to $35bn.

Asian stocks sold off on Monday amid weaker-than-expected tourism data from China’s golden week holiday – which dented investor sentiment surrounding recovery in the region.

What to watch today:

• Ahead of the local trading session here in Australia the SPI futures are anticipating the ASX to open Tuesday’s session 0.43% higher at market open this morning.
• On the commodities front this morning, oil is up 3.91% at 86 US dollars and 4 cents a barrel, gold is up 1.22% at 1854 US dollars an ounce and iron ore is flat at 119 US dollars and 50 cents a tonne.
• Oil price jumped 4% after Hamas invaded Israel over the weekend – at this point there appears to be no direct impact on oil supply and demand however a prolonged war will definitely have some form of impact.
• AU$1.00 is buying US$0.64, 95.05 Japanese Yen, 52.12 British Pence and NZ$1.06.

Trading Ideas:

• Bell Potter maintains a buy rating on Aeris Resources (ASX:AIS) and has increased its price target to 30 cents with a current share price of 18.5 cents. It’s near term outlook remains highly leveraged to increasing copper grades at the Tritton copper mine, where high grade ore sources have commenced production and exploration success is likely to sustain it.
• And Bell Potter maintains a buy rating on Smartpay Holdings (ASX:SMP) despite lowering their price target by 4 cents, with a current share price of $1.53. Their upcoming results should provide for further operating delta with a focus on unit growth and cost maintenance.