Australian Sharemarket Set to Fall as Oil Surges Past $108

The Australian sharemarket is headed for another decline as oil prices surge past US$108 per barrel, along with rising global bond yields and expectations of higher interest rates.

ASX 200 futures are pointing to a fall of 81 points or 0.9% at the open after the benchmark index dropped 1% to 8,819.40 on Thursday.

The rally in oil prices has pushed Brent crude above US$108 per barrel for the first time since May, while West Texas Intermediate jumped 6.7% to US$102.48 per barrel.