ASX plunges at the open dragged down by miners
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
More news: Australian shares slumped at the open, weighed down by the mining sector, taking the total weekly loss to around 4%.
The benchmark ASX 200 was down by 99.6 points, or 1.11%, to 8,840 at 10:29am AEDT. The drop marks the worst week for the benchmark since May 2022. Six of the 11 sectoral indices opened in the red.
Tech (+2.82%) was the strongest performing sector, continuing on a third consecutive positive session, led by WiseTech (+3.89%), Xero (+3.80%), Catapult Sports (+4.12%) and Siteminder (+6.05%).
Viva Energy (+11.89%) surged at the open and was the best performing stock after UBS has reiterated its ‘Buy’ rating on the company on the back of higher oil prices amid ongoing Middle East conflict.
Karoon Energy (+6.52%), Droneshield (+5.13%), QBE Insurance (+4.39%) and Block (+4.34%) were also among the top performers across the ASX 200 in early trade.
Mining (-3.92%) was the worst performer at the open, dragged lower by Capstone Copper (-7.08%), Catalyst Metals (-6.67%), BHP (-4.17%) and Sandfire Resources (-5.82%).
Deep Yellow (-6.09%) was among the worst performing stocks after reporting an interim net loss of $7.78 million and lower revenue.
On the data front, the Australian Bureau of Statistics is scheduled to release labour accounts assets and liabilities of Australian securitisers for December at 11:30am AEDT.
Australian shares set to fall sharply as Middle East conflict lifts oil prices
The news: Australian shares are set to open sharply lower after US stocks extended losses on Thursday, as the Middle East conflict entered its sixth day, driving oil prices higher and raising concerns about inflation and the outlook for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.
The numbers: Updated at 7:48am AEDT:
- ASX futures: down 150 points to 8,777.
- Wall Street: Dow Jones down 1.79%, S&P 500 down 0.85% and the Nasdaq down 0.66%.
- Europe: CAC 40 down 1.49%, DAX down 1.61% and FTSE 100 down 1.45%.
- Spot gold: down 1.20% to USD5,075 per ounce.
- Oil prices: Brent up 3.82% to USD84.52/bbl and US WTI up 6.90% to USD79.85/bbl.
- AUD: down 0.89% at 70.12 US cents.
- Bitcoin: down 2.12% to USD71,164.
The context: All three major US indices traded lower overnight, with the Dow Jones falling nearly 2% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq declined about 1%, as attacks in the Middle East spread to more countries.
Shares in Nvidia and other chipmakers fell after Bloomberg reported that the Trump administration had drafted regulations that would require US approval for AI chip exports anywhere in the world.
Brent crude rose above USD85 a barrel, while US crude jumped 8.5% to USD81, its highest level since July 2024 and the largest one-day gain since 2020, as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz trapped thousands of vessels in the Persian Gulf.
In bond markets, the US 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 4.14% as rising oil prices fuelled concerns about inflation, which could potentially delay interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Investors now expect a 25-basis-point rate cut to take place in October rather than July, according to Reuters.
Locally, the Australian Bureau of Statistics is scheduled to release labour accounts assets and liabilities of Australian securitisers for December at 11:30am AEDT.
