Australian Market Trims Early Losses In Mid-market

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is trimming its early losses in mid-market trading on Monday, snapping the three-session winning streak, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street on Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling below the 8,400.00 level, with losses across most sectors led by mining and technology stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 143.20 points or 1.68 percent to 8,389.10, after hitting a low of 8,353.90 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 150.80 points or 1.72 percent to 8,638.90. Australian stocks closed notably higher on Friday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group is losing almost 2 percent, Fortescue Metals is sliding almost 5 percent, Rio Tinto is declining almost 3 percent and Mineral Resources is slipping more than 4 percent. Oil stocks are lower. Woodside Energy is losing more than 1 percent, Santos is down almost 1 percent, Origin Energy is slipping more than 2 percent and Beach energy is declining almost 2 percent.

Among tech stocks, Zip is sliding almost 5 percent, WiseTech Global is losing more than 2 percent and Appen are declining almost 7 percent. Xero is flat. Afterpay owner Block is in a trading halt.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Newmont, Gold Road Resources and Northern Star Resources are slipping almost 1 percent each, while Evolution Mining is losing more than 1 percent and Resolute Mining is declining almost 8 percent after chief executive Terry Holohan stepped down with immediate effect. Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Banking and Westpac are losing more than 1 percent each, while National Australia Bank is declining almost 2 percent.

In other news, shares in Westgold are tumbling more than 12 percent following the downward revision of its full-year production guidance after the ramp-up of two major mining assets was slower than planned.

Shares in Fisher & Paykel are slipping almost 8 percent after the medical devices company sounded a warning that US tariffs on Mexico will lead to investor's costs increasing in the 2026 financial year.

In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Australia moved back up into expansion territory in January, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Monday with a PMI score of 50.2. That's up from 47.8 in December and it moves above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Meanwhile, the total value of retail sales in Australia was down a seasonally adjusted 0.1 percent on month in December, the Australian Bureau of Statistics or ABS said on Monday, coming in at A$36.991 billion. That beat forecasts for a decline of 0.7 percent following the 0.8 percent increase in November. On a yearly basis, sales were up 4.6 percent. For the fourth quarter of 2024, retail sales were up 1.0 percent on quarter and 1.1 percent on year at A$105.820 billion.

The ABS also said total number of building permits issued in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 0.7 percent on month in December, coming in at 15,174. That missed forecasts for an increase of 0.9 percent following the upwardly revised 3.4 percent decline in November (Originally -3.6 percent). On a yearly basis, building permits climbed 5.6 percent following the upwardly revised 7/1 percent jump in the previous month (originally 6.0 percent). The value of total building approved rose 3.5 percent to A$14.94 billion following a 6.6 percent rise in November.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.609 on Monday.