The Australian share market closed lower on Monday, echoing Friday’s losses on Wall Street as investors flocked to the relative safety of bonds and gold due to escalating tensions in the Middle East.
The S&P/ASX 200 declined by 24.5 points or 0.3% to 7026.5, while the All Ordinaries dropped 0.4%. Nine out of the 11 industry sectors recorded losses, with the tech sector leading the fall at 2.8%.
Apart from concerns about the Middle East conflict, markets this week will be seeking guidance from a series of speeches and reports from the Reserve Bank of Australia, including the latest meeting minutes.
The Australian dollar was at $0.6324, hovering near one-year lows. Brent oil was flat at $US90.92 a barrel after a 5.7% leap over the weekend. Gold prices fell by 0.6% to $US1934.3, following a 3.3% surge on Friday. Iron ore futures also saw an uptick, increasing by 1%.
The US reporting season will be in full swing this week, with financial results expected from Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX), and a host of regional banks.
In company news, the information technology sector underperformed, with Wisetech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) falling 2.1%, Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO) losing 3.1%, and Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT) declining 2.5%. Albemarle withdrew its $6.6 billion bid for Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR), causing Liontown to request a trading halt while it reviews its Kathleen Valley Project funding.
Fletcher Building Ltd (ASX: FBU) was the worst-performing stock on the ASX 200, with shares plunging 9.3% after the company resumed trading. Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) slipped 0.7% following the appointment of Ampol chairman Steven Gregg as chairman-elect.
Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) fell 2.4% after the resignation of Loyalty chief executive Olivia Wirth.
Despite the overall downturn, Magellan Global Fund saw a 4.5% rally after Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG) announced plans to convert the fund’s closed class units to open class units. Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE) also edged higher by 0.4% after reporting that trading in the September quarter met the group’s expectations. However, SkyCity Entertainment saw a 2.4% decline following the announcement that CEO Michael Ahearne will step down early next year.
