FX.co ★ Australian Stocks End Lower

The S&P/ASX 200 index closed with a 0.2% decrease at 8,800 on Wednesday, continuing its downturn from the previous day. This decline was primarily driven by a drop in technology stocks due to concerns over potentially overvalued AI assets. The leading financial institution, Commonwealth Bank, also added to the losses. Technology stocks witnessed a significant reduction of 3.3%, reflecting the overnight setbacks in Nvidia and other AI-related companies following SoftBank's decision to reduce its stake in the chip manufacturer. Companies like NEXTDC and DigiCo Infra REIT, operating data centers, each saw a decline of approximately 2.5%, while Goodman Group, a major player in the property market, fell by 1.3%. In the financial sector, Commonwealth Bank remained a major detractor, extending its two-day downturn to nearly 10% after cautioning about potential margin pressure. However, this prompted investors to shift to other banking stocks, resulting in a 1.8% rise for ANZ, reaching a record high, and bringing NAB and Westpac close to their peak values. Meanwhile, the mining and gold sectors both gained around 0.9%, benefiting from strong iron ore and gold prices.