ASX trims early losses, as tech stocks plunge 4.5%
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
More news: The ASX has pared earlier declines as oil producers and coal miners extended gains from Monday and as the big four banks clawed back losses from the start of the session.
The ASX 200 was down 0.8% to 7,899.4 at 2:45pm AEDT, with the heaviest falls seen in the tech sector, which had shed 4.3%.
The market's five largest tech stocks WiseTech (-3%), Xero (-5.7%), Technology One (-6.2%), NextDC (-2.2%) and Life360 (-8.9%) were all trading lower.
ASX tumbles 1.3% after Wall Street selloff; banks, tech shares drop
More news: The Australian share market has opened sharply lower following a tech sector-led sell-off on Wall Street. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was down 103 points or 1.3% to 7,859.60 in early trading, with banking, technology and consumer stocks among the worst affected.
CBA shares were down 2% to $145.19, while NAB, Westpac and ANZ were down between 1% and 1.5%. WiseTech and Xero slumped nearly 4% each, while JB Hi-Fi was down 3% and Qantas slid 9%.
Earlier, all three major US stock indices closed sharply lower amid growing investor concerns about US President Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again tariff actions against the biggest US trading partners, as well as anxiety over a possible US government shutdown as lawmakers scrambled to pass a spending bill.
Tesla slides 15%, tech stocks lose momentum amid Wall Street slump
More news: The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 4%, marking its worst day since 2022. The ‘Magnificent Seven’ tech stocks took the biggest hit. Tesla sank 15.4% as customers pulled back in the wake of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency firings and his support for far-right political parties in Europe. AI bellwether Nvidia and Apple fell 5%, Meta dropped 4% and Amazon lost 2.4%. Palantir, another star of the artificial intelligence trade, slid 10%, while Atlassian lost 9.6%.
The widespread selloff was mostly driven by anxiety about the impact of tariffs after Trump said in an interview to Fox News that the US economy would see “a period of transition” and refused to rule out a recession. Analysts at Goldman Sachs on Friday said the chances of a US recession had increased from 15% to 20%, as they revised forecasts to incorporate higher tariffs and inflation, alongside a hit to gross domestic product and employment. Morgan Stanley also cut its 2025 US GDP growth forecast from 1.9% to 1.5%. HSBC downgraded US stocks, citing uncertainty around tariffs.
"It's a material drop for one day but we're seeing the normal sort of drawdown that you see in an upmarket," Tom Hainlin, national investment strategist at US Bank Wealth Management in Minneapolis told Reuters. "Concerns are mounting and investors are moving to the sidelines, but we haven't seen growth worries manifest in data yet."
Australian shares to fall as Wall Street tumbles on recession fears
The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open lower, tracking heavy losses on Wall Street amid growing investor concerns that the US economy could be heading into recession.
The numbers: Updated at 7.25am AEDT:
- ASX futures: down 70 points or 0.88% at 7,895 points
- Wall Street: Dow Jones down 2.08%, S&P 500 down 2.70%, Nasdaq down 4.0%
- Europe: FTSE 100 down 0.92%, CAC 40 down 0.90%, DAX down 1.69%
- Spot gold: down 0.80% to USD2,885.73 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent down 1.63% to USD69.21/bbl, US WTI down 1.58% to USD65.98/bbl
- AUD: down 0.62% at 62.73 US cents
- Bitcoin: down 2.03% to USD79,001.13.
The context: All three major US stock indices suffered sharp declines, with the S&P 500 benchmark closing below its 200-day moving average support level for the first time since November 2023. It comes amid US President Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again tariff actions against the biggest US trading partners, and mounting anxieties from a possible US government shutdown as lawmakers scrambled to pass a spending bill. Tech stocks were also under pressure from a stronger Japanese yen and a spike in sovereign bond yields. Meanwhile, Bitcoin plunged below USD80,000, while oil prices slid to a six-month low.
What to watch: NAB will release its February business confidence and conditions reports at 11.30am.
