2142 GMT - Australia's S&P/ASX 200 is set to fall at the open, after Wall Street lost ground on stronger-than-expected inflation data, which weighed on investors' hopes that rate cuts may be imminent. ASX futures are down by 0.7%, suggesting the benchmark index will extend Thursday's 0.2% fall. In the U.S., the S&P 500 fell 0.3%, which represents a drop of 0.5% from its record close Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.4%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3%. Ahead of the open, Iress said it would sell its U.K mortgages business to Bain Capital, a move that will cut its net debt materially. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 14, 2024 17:42 ET (21:42 GMT)