AUS
NZ
UK
CA
USA
IND
Highlights
- Australian shares reduce losses as bank stocks dip.
- ANZ leads declines after going ex-dividend.
- Mineral Resources pauses operations amid low spodumene prices.
Australian shares have managed to recover some losses after a morning dip, driven by significant declines in bank stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 Index saw a 0.9% drop to 8,183 points, down from a larger 1.4% loss earlier in the session. This trend follows a cooling of the US stock rally that marked a five-day high for the S&P 500, amid signs of market consolidation.
On the ASX, the financial sector faced the sharpest declines, falling by 1.9% as shifting market sentiment now expects the Reserve Bank of Australia’s first interest rate cut in September, a pushback from earlier expectations of May. (ASX:CBA) Commonwealth Bank dropped 1.6%, while (ASX:WBC) Westpac and (ASX:NAB) National Australia Bank also declined. Meanwhile, (ASX:ANZ) saw a 4.6% drop to $31.07 as it went ex-dividend, marking one of the largest bank sector slides.
The mining sector also saw substantial declines as investors shifted focus. The sector has dropped 1.1%, extending a five-day cumulative loss to 4.4%. (ASX:MIN) Mineral Resources saw a significant 5.6% drop to $35.57 due to a temporary halt in operations at its Bald Hill site in Western Australia amid low spodumene prices, which led to 300 staff members facing redeployment or redundancy.
Other sectors faced mixed results. (ASX:LNW) Light & Wonder fell 6.4% to $148.77 despite reporting a 15% rise in gaming revenue, as earnings per share came in below analysts’ expectations. Its competitor, (ASX:ALL) Aristocrat Leisure, reported a 17% increase in net profit to $1.45 billion for FY24, supported by strong operations in North America, boosting shares by 1.9%.
(ASX:JHX) James Hardie experienced a notable 6.8% rise to $53.67, despite a 23% decrease in net profit. The company cited a challenging demand environment in Asia and Europe but maintained the lower end of its volume guidance, which seemed to encourage investor confidence.
Family safety app (ASX:360) Life360 saw a 7.6% decline to $22.35 despite reporting a boost in revenue, attributing it to back-to-school demand and its new “Tiles” safety product. Earnings, however, fell short of market expectations for CY24.
Wealth manager (ASX:IFL) Insignia Financial dropped 4.5% to $3.18 following its latest strategy update, which aimed at increasing operational efficiency but failed to impress shareholders.
Gold and iron ore prices remained stable, with gold slipping slightly below $US2,600 per ounce, while Bitcoin traded near $US89,000. Oil prices edged higher as market consolidation continued amidst mixed economic signals.
