Australian shares opened lower by 0.4% due to Commonwealth Bank's decreased quarterly profit, leading to selling pressure on financial stocks, while multiple retailers also declined on reports of reduced consumer spending amidst rising living costs. This reflects a diverse consumer landscape, with older generations weathering higher interest rates better than younger ones, echoing similar trends observed in the US, where varying performances among companies indicate differing impacts of changing economic conditions.
At 11:30am, the S&P/ASX 200 is 0.75 per cent lower at 7,745.90.
The SPI futures are pointing to a fall of 47 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector is Energy, up 0.54 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Health Care, down 1.43 per cent.
The best-performing large cap is Meridian Energy (ASX:MEZ), trading 3.36 per cent higher at $5.54. It is followed by shares in AGL Energy (ASX:AGL) and James Hardie Industries plc (ASX:JHX).
The worst-performing large cap is JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH), trading 4.0 per cent lower at $57.57. It is followed by shares in Harvey Norman Holdings (ASX:HVN) and EBOS Group (ASX:EBO).
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$2317.70 an ounce.
Iron ore is 2.9 per cent lower at US$115.35 a tonne.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a 0.5 per cent fall.
One Australian dollar is buying 65.79 US cents.
