Last night's global session was punctuated by a lack of conviction and low volumes, with traders and investors keeping their powder dry ahead of Bernanke's Jackson Hole address later this week.

In London, the UK's FTSE 100 was closed, whilst the French CAC firmed 0.9% and the German DAX added 1.1%.

Stateside, the Dow Jones slipped 33 points (-0.3%) to settle at 13125, whilst the S&P was flat and the NASDAQ added 0.1%.

The euro gained against the majority of its most-traded peers as investors speculated that European leaders will make progress on measures to stem the region's sovereign-debt crisis.

Oil fell for a third session on speculation that Tropical Storm Isaac will have limited impact on production in the Gulf of Mexico.

Oil for October delivery fell 68 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $95.47 a barrel on the NYMEX. Oil is down 3.4% this year.

In company news, Severn Group Holdings has reported an underlying net profit of $332.4 million, up 39% on the previous year's result, and above its own guidance for growth of between 20%-30%.

Today's session will bring us new home sales data (tentative).

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Midday Market Analysis: Lacking Conviction is a post from: Australian Stock Report Market Pulse Blog