by Peter Milios
At the closing bell, the S&P/ASX 200 was 0.26 per cent lower at 7,099.70. The drop was mainly driven by losses in the technology and real estate sectors.
The technology sector, with Xero (ASX:XRO) tumbling by 5.3 per cent, WiseTech (ASX:WTC) falling by 3.4 per cent, and Altium (ASX:ALU) losing 4.9 per cent, was the worst performer. This decline was influenced by a sell-off in the technology-heavy Nasdaq.
In the real estate sector, Goodman (ASX:GMG) shares dropped by 2.4 per cent, Scentre (ASX:SCG) shed 3.3 per cent, Stockland (ASX:SGP) lost 3.7 per cent, Mirvac (ASX:MGR) fell 3.4 per cent, and Centuria Capital (ASX:CNI) tumbled 6.3 per cent.
Consumer discretionary stocks, including Wesfarmers (ASX:WES), which lost 1.1 per cent, Corporate Travel (ASX:CTD), down 4.8 per cent, and Domino’s Pizza (ASX:DMP), which shed 3.4 per cent, dived by 1.4 per cent.
On the other hand, the mining sector saw gains, with BHP Group (ASX:BHP) rising by 1.2 per cent, Fortescue Metals (ASX:FMG) increasing by 1.7 per cent, and Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) up by 2.2 per cent.
Futures
The Dow Jones futures are pointing to a fall of 32 points.
The S&P 500 futures are pointing to a fall of 7.25 points.
The Nasdaq futures are pointing to a fall of 63.75 points.
The SPI futures are down 31 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector was Energy, up 1.33 per cent. The worst-performing sector was Information Technology, down 3.83 per cent.
The best-performing large cap was Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC), closing 5.54 per cent higher at $6.48. It was followed by shares in Computershare (ASX:CPU) and Yancoal Australia (ASX:YAL).
The worst-performing large cap was Xero (ASX:XRO), closing 5.26 per cent lower at $106.21. It was followed by shares in Altium (ASX:ALU) and SEEK (ASX:SEK).
Asian markets
Japan’s Nikkei has lost 0.79 per cent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has lost 0.12 per cent.
China’s Shanghai Composite has lost 1.29 per cent.
Company news
Iceni Gold (ASX:ICL) has hit a high-grade vein at the Everleigh well in Western Australia. Technical Director David Nixon comments: “The high-grade rock chip results from the vein are supported by the underlying UFF+ soil anomaly, prospectivity indicators and the multiple coincident targets.” Shares closed 53.1 per cent higher at 9.8 cents.
Avita Medical (ASX:AVH) has announced FDA Approval of its spray-on skin cell product RECELL for the treatment of full thickness skin defects. CEO Jim Corbett comments, “The FDA approval now offers surgeons a best-in-class treatment option for a multitude of severe wounds within inpatient and outpatient settings.” Shares closed 11 per cent higher at $4.76.
Antisense Therapeutics (ASX:ANP, US OTC:ATHJY, FSE:AWY) has announced that the first patient has been dosed in the company’s Phase IIb Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Trial. Three patients are currently in the screening phase of the trial. Shares closed 11.1 per cent higher at 7 cents.
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$1,959.50 an ounce.
Iron ore is 1.1 per cent higher at US$111.10 a tonne.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a 2.14 per cent rise.
Light crude is trading $0.07 lower at US$72.46 a barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 66.63 US cents.
