Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 27 points, or 0.3%, in early trade on Monday, with 10 of 11 sectors in the red, while Brent crude eased to $US79 a barrel. The moves followed two company updates: Westpac’s sale of RAMS loans and FleetPartners’ disclosure of a A$770 million takeover offer from SG Fleet. Oil prices also came under pressure after US President Donald Trump said he had called off planned strikes on Iran, lifting expectations that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen and easing geopolitical tensions.

New Zealand retailer Briscoe Group released unaudited interim trading figures, showing 13-week sales to 26 July rose 0.25% year on year to NZ$193.4 million and half-year sales increased 0.8% to NZ$374.2 million. Sporting goods sales climbed 4.8%, supported by the FIFA World Cup and other major events. The company said it expects half-year net profit to be no less than NZ$27 million. Briscoe Group is due to publish its official half-year results next month.

Woodside Energy has had to switch steel suppliers in the United Arab Emirates to keep its large Louisiana LNG project on schedule after shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was disrupted. Higher oil and gas prices driven by the Middle East conflict lifted the company’s June-quarter revenue to $6 billion. The average price it received for oil and gas rose to $85 a barrel over the same period.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5% to 8796.7 on Friday, leaving it down 0.1% for the week. Gold slid below $US4000 an ounce, marking its biggest weekly drop since early June, while Brent crude rose to about $US85 a barrel for its strongest week since April. Renewed fighting in the Middle East and worsening tensions around Iran lifted inflation concerns and strengthened expectations the US Federal Reserve could raise rates, weighing on gold. Mining stocks led declines, with BHP, Northern Star, Genesis Minerals and Regis Resources all falling sharply.

Australian construction and fitout company FDC Consolidated is set to list on the ASX on Thursday, aiming to raise $400 million. The deal is expected to value the company at around $1 billion, making it the largest IPO on the exchange so far in 2026. It is set to surpass retailers SkinKandy and Koala as the biggest float of the year to date.

Australian shares were set to open higher after ASX 200 futures rose 0.2% to 8810, as late gains in US tech sentiment followed Micron Technology’s earnings beat. US inflation worries eased as the 10-year Treasury yield fell 10 basis points to 4.39% after oil slid more than 5% and bitcoin briefly dipped below $US60,000. Investors are awaiting Australia’s May labour force report at 11.30am AEST, which is expected to show the economy added more than 40,000 jobs and the unemployment rate edged down to 4.4%.

Australia’s Hyperion Asset Management, which manages $12.5 billion, has long held an outsized position in Tesla, with the stock making up more than 12 per cent of its portfolio. It has now added a stake in SpaceX to its $3.8 billion Global Growth Fund, where the position sits mid-ranked by weighting. The move strengthens Hyperion’s combined exposure to key technology assets linked to Elon Musk, without involving any secondary-market trading announcement or financial disclosures.

South Australia has passed new legislation affirming BHP’s mining rights at the Olympic Dam site, clearing the way for an expansion of its copper smelter. The project carries a total investment of $5.6 billion and is aimed at increasing copper output. The Kokatha Aboriginal Corporation has opposed the move, saying a compensation agreement has not been reached, but the laws have taken effect. The development is directly tied to the pace of copper resource development and strengthens near- to mid-term expectations for an increase in copper supply.