Shares and the Australian dollar experienced declines for the second consecutive session on Thursday due to weakened commodity prices, prolonging a challenging July for Australia's base metal miners.
The S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.3%, or 102.5 points, to 7861 points, marking its worst day since June 11 and lowest close since July 10. The Australian dollar decreased by 0.6% to $US0.656, as copper, oil, gas, gold, and silver prices continued to fall. The materials sector declined by 1.6% and is down 4.1% over five days.
The technology sector was the worst performer, falling 2.7%, influenced by the Nasdaq's 3.4% drop, its largest since October 2022, due to profit-taking and concerns over inflated valuations in the US.
The domestic market challenges to relatively muted earnings compared to global figures and the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) contemplation of rate rises, apart from Japan. He noted US earnings growth expectations at 10-12%, compared to Australia's 5%, with the energy and resources sectors expected to be a drag.
Key stock movements included Fortescue Metals' 5.5% drop to $20.14, after reporting potential cost increases in iron ore mining. Gold miners were a bright spot, with Newmont up 1.7% to $72.62.
In the tech sector, Afterpay fell 6.7% to $93.98, Xero declined 3.5% to $131.10, and WiseTech dropped 3.2% to $92.02.
Macquarie's weak investment banking performance led to a 3.4% decline in its stock to $201.61. ANZ Bank's shares fell 0.6% to $29.32 amid ongoing investigations, while Seek wrote down the value of its Chinese marketplace Zhaopin by $141 million, leading to a 1.7% drop to $20.20.
