Australian Market Modestly Lower
(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is modestly lower on Wednesday, extending the slight losses in the previous two sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying above the 7,400 level, following the broadly negative cues overnight from Wall Street, as gold miners and techn
(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is modestly lower on Wednesday, extending the slight losses in the previous two sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying above the 7,400 level, following the broadly negative cues overnight from Wall Street, as gold miners and technology stocks are weighing down the market.
Omicron worries also persists and investors looked ahead to a Federal Reserve meeting amid expectations the central bank will announce plans to accelerate its timetable for reducing bond purchases.
Domestically, New South Wales reported 1,360 new cases and one death on Tuesday, with a total on 110 Omicron cases. Victoria also reported 1,405 new cases and three deaths, with about seven suspected Omicron cases.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 37.50 points or 0.51 percent to 7,340.90, after hitting a low of 7,335.90 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 47.60 points or 0.62 percent to 7,650.70. Australian stocks ended slightly lower on Tuesday.
Among major miners, BHP Group and Fortescue Metals are edging down 0.2 percent each, while OZ Minerals is losing almost 1 percent. Rio Tinto and Mineral Resources are edging up 0.4 percent each.
Oil stocks are higher. Woodside Petroleum and Origin Energy are edging up 0.3 percent each, while Santos is gaining almost 1 percent and Beach energy is flat.
In the tech space, WiseTech Global is losing almost 1 percent and Zip is slipping more than 3 percent, while Afterpay, Appen and Xero are declining more than 2 percent each.
Among the big four banks, ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are edging down 0.5 percent each, while Commonwealth Bank is edging down 0.2 percent each. Westpac is gaining almost 1 percent.
