ASX extends losses as miners and tech stocks weigh
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
More news: Only nine ASX 200 stocks were in the green at 1:30pm AEDT, as the Australian sharemarket continued to slide in early afternoon trading.
The index was down 124.7 points or 1.6% to 7,857.3, led by losses in materials (-2.6%), technology (-1.8%) and energy (-1.7%) shares.
Iron ore giants Rio Tinto (-3.4%), BHP (-3.1%) and Fortescue (-2.8%) were among the heaviest hit, as were diversified miners Mineral Resources (-3.9%) and South32 (-3.6%) and lithium producer Pilbara Minerals (-8.2%).
Life360 (-5.9%), NextDC (-3%), Technology One (-2.7%) and Xero (-2%) helped drag the technology sector lower, even as software heavyweight WiseTech Global (0.6%) advanced on news of two new board appointments.
Elsewhere, oil producers Beach Energy (-2.7%), Karoon Energy (-2.6%) and Woodside Energy (-2.1%) all saw sizeable losses as global crude prices lowered.
Australian shares slump amid tariff uncertainty
More news: The Australian sharemarket has slumped in early trading, following a sharp fall on Wall Street on Friday as investors brace for US President Donald Trump’s broad-based tariff announcements on 2 April and amid growing concerns of weak US economic growth.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was down 105 points or 1.3% to 7,876.90 within the first hour of trade, led by losses in materials, financial and technology shares.
BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group were all down more than 2%, while the major banks fell between 0.5% to 2% each. ANZ shares fell 2% despite the bank bringing forward the start date of incoming CEO Nuno Matos. Technology shares also traded lower, led by nearly 2% drop in WiseTech Global after the logistics software major said it is making progress on a detailed succession plan with executive chair Richard White.
All three major US stock indices closed lower on Friday after data showed US personal consumption expenditure rose more than expected in February while consumer spending rebounded less than expected.
Australian shares to slump as Wall Street tumbles on tariff fears
The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open sharply lower after stocks tumbled on Wall Street on Friday amid fears of weak US economic growth and high inflation as the Trump administration escalates tariffs.
The numbers: Updated at 7.25am AEDT:
- ASX futures: down 91 points or 1.13% at 7,929 points
- Wall Street: Dow Jones down 1.69%, S&P 500 down 1.97%, Nasdaq down 2.70%
- Europe: FTSE 100 down 0.08%, CAC 40 down 0.93%, DAX down 0.96%
- Spot gold: up 0.91% to USD3,085.12 per ounce
- Oil prices: Brent down 0.54% to USD73.63/bbl, US WTI down 0.80% to USD69.36/bbl
- AUD: up 0.05% at 62.90 US cents
- Bitcoin: down 0.09% to USD83,825.10.
The context: All three major US stock indices closed lower on Friday, led by technology heavyweights after the latest personal consumption expenditures index showed prices rose more than expected in February - the highest in 13 months, while consumer spending rebounded less than expected. This comes ahead of Trump’s broad-based tariff announcements expected on 2 April, which investors fear will boost prices of imported goods, drive inflation and deter the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates.
What to watch: The Reserve Bank of Australia starts a two-day meeting before its monetary policy decision on Tuesday.
The source: Bloomberg
