On Thursday, the sharemarket experienced its steepest decline in three weeks, driven by a weak lead from Wall Street and a sharp drop in Nvidia's stock, which fell nearly 9% due to disappointing guidance. The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.3% to 8045.1, moving away from its recent record of 8148.7, with the All Ordinaries also down 0.3%. Among the 11 sectors, financials performed well, with Westpac leading gains. However, consumer-related stocks suffered, with Wesfarmers declining 4.1% despite increased profits and dividends, and Cettire plummeting 20% after missing profit estimates. Mineral Resources fell 8% to a three-year low, influenced by soft lithium prices and the omission of a final dividend. The resources sector also faced pressure from weaker iron ore prices. The energy sector was the biggest laggard, as Brent crude prices dropped below $US80 a barrel, with Santos and Woodside both declining. Notably, Qantas rebounded 0.8% after announcing plans to resume dividends next year. Other significant movements included Tabcorp’s 5.2% loss, Perpetual’s 3.8% decline due to board changes, and Bega Group’s 10% rise following a return to profitability. IDP Education rose 3.1% after reporting record revenue.
Futures
The Dow Jones futures are pointing to a rise of 110 points.
The S&P 500 futures are pointing to a fall of 15.75 points.
The Nasdaq futures are pointing to a fall of 104.75 points.
The SPI futures are down 22 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector was Financials, up 0.32 per cent. The worst-performing sector was Energy, down 2.15 per cent.
The best-performing large cap was Spark New Zealand (ASX:SPK), closing 3.32 per cent higher at $3.42. It was followed by shares in Mercury NZ (ASX:MCY) and Meridian Energy (ASX:MEZ).
The worst-performing large cap was Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN), closing 8.08 per cent lower at $40.61. It was followed by shares in Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) and Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS).
Asian markets
Japan's Nikkei has lost 0.02 per cent.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng has gained 0.10 per cent.
China's Shanghai Composite has lost 1.12 per cent.
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$2,554.00 an ounce.
Iron ore is 0.6 per cent lower at US$100.45 a tonne.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a 0.99 per cent rise.
Light crude is trading $0.26 higher at US$74.78 a barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 68.03 US cents.
