The Australian stock market experienced a notable decline on Tuesday, reversing gains from the past three sessions, despite positive indications from Wall Street. The S&P/ASX 200 Index dropped 47.60 points, or 0.58%, to 8,222.20, nearing the 8,200 level with declines in mining and financial stocks mitigated by gains in technology and energy sectors. The broader All Ordinaries Index also fell by 44.90 points, or 0.53%, to 8,493.50. On Monday, Australian stocks had closed significantly higher.
Major mining companies saw substantial losses, with BHP Group falling nearly 2%, and Rio Tinto, Mineral Resources, and Fortescue Metals each declining by 2.5%.
Conversely, oil stocks mostly gained. Origin Energy slightly rose by 0.3%, while Woodside Energy and Santos each saw nearly 1% increases. Beach Energy remained flat.
In the technology sector, Appen surged by over 9%, WiseTech Global rose nearly 1%, and Block (Afterpay's parent company) and Xero each edged up by 0.3%. Zip slightly fell by 0.4%.
Gold mining stocks did not fare as well, with Gold Road Resources dropping 2.5%, Evolution Mining falling more than 1%, and Newmont, Resolute Mining, and Northern Star Resources seeing declines ranging from 0.3% to 2%.
Among the major banks, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac decreased nearly 1% and more than 1%, respectively, while ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank each edged down between 0.2% and 0.5%.
In other notable movements, Sigma Healthcare shares soared by over 13% following the announcement of new data-sharing rules aimed at easing regulatory concerns over its proposed $700 million merger with Chemist Warehouse. Qantas shares declined almost 4% after Qatar Airways announced its plan to acquire a 25% stake in Virgin Australia. REA Group shares dipped more than 4% after confirming it would abandon its bid for Rightmove, following the UK-listed real estate site's rejection of REA's fourth offer.
On the economic front, the latest Judo Bank survey revealed that Australia's manufacturing sector further contracted in September, registering a PMI score of 46.7, down from 48.5 in August. This score moves further below the 50-mark that separates expansion from contraction.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar was trading at $0.692 on Tuesday.
On Wall Street, stocks ended mostly higher on Monday, following a lackluster trading session. The Dow marginally increased by 17.15 points, setting a new record closing high at 42,330.15. The Nasdaq rose by 69.58 points, or 0.4%, to 18,189.17, and the S&P 500 climbed 24.31 points, or 0.4%, to a new record close at 5,762.48.
European markets saw declines; the French CAC 40 Index fell by 2.0%, the UK’s FTSE 100 Index dropped by 1.0%, and the German DAX Index slid by 0.8%.
Crude oil prices ended flat on Monday, with uncertainty about future oil demand from China weighing on the market. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November settled at $68.17 a barrel, down $0.01.
