ASX 200 closed down 26 points to 7253 (-0.4%), letting go of yesterday’s gains, snapping a three-day advance.

Wall Street closes higher overnight in a holiday-shortened session kicking off the second half of the year on a positive note.

RBA – Nobody knows is the answer to the question. Will they or won’t they? The lower-than-expected CPI number last week suggests a good chance that they will pause rates, but almost all the strategists are saying the same thing, inflation is too high, and even if they do pause now, they will have to raise rates if not three times more. If they do pause, I think it’ll be good for the market, whatever the strategists are saying. And hopefully, it will extend this consumer discretionary rally for us. We have three retailers in our IDEAS PORTFOLIO.

Dow Jones up 285 points (+0.84%). Up 345 at best. Up 148 at worst. NASDAQ +1.45%. S&P 500 +1.24%.

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ASX 200 closed up 43 points to 7246 (+0.6%), supported by a rise in commodity prices. Starting the new financial year off in the positive.

In this episode of On the Couch we catch up with Adam Dawes from Shaw and Partners talking on the market moving themes of the last year. What 23/24 holds in store for investors. His three picks for the new financial year, and answers some member questions on ZIP, MIN, CXL, LOV, and ABB.