Australian Market Notably Lower

(RTTNews) - After ending with slight gains in the previous two sessions, the Australian stock market is notably lower on Tuesday, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying below the 7,100 level, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, with weakness across most sectors led by mining and technology stocks. Traders also cautiously await domestic inflation data due on Wednesday.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 33.00 points or 0.47 percent to 7,043.50, after hitting a low of 7,038.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 30.80 points or 0.42 percent to 7,247.80. Australian stocks closed slightly higher on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group and Fortescue Metals are losing more than 1 percent each, while Rio Tinto is down almost 1 percent. Mineral Resources is edging up 0.3 percent. Oil stocks are mostly lower. Santos, Origin Energy and Woodside Energy are edging down 0.2 to 0.4 percent each, while Beach energy is flat. Among tech stocks, Xero is slipping almost 1 percent, WiseTech Global is losing almost 2 percent and Zip is declining more than 1 percent. Afterpay owner Block and Appen are flat. Gold miners are mostly lower. Northern Star resources and Newcrest Mining are losing more than 1 percent each, while Evolution Mining and Gold Road Resources are down almost 1 percent each. Resolute Mining is adding almost 1 percent. Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank and ANZ Banking are edging down 0.2 to 0.4 percent each, while Westpac is losing almost 1 percent.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.642 on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading session on Monday following the sell-off seen last week. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before closing in positive territory.

The major averages moved to the upside going into the close of trading. The Nasdaq climbed 59.51 points or 0.5 percent to 13,271.32, the S&P 500 rose 17.38 points or 0.4 percent to 4,337.44 and the Dow inched up 43.04 points or 0.1 percent to 34,006.88.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index slumped 1.0 percent, the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.9 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.8 percent.

Crude oil prices settled lower on Monday, as concerns about energy demand and interest rates offset optimism about a tighter supply outlook. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November ended down $0.35 or about 0.4 percent at $89.68 a barrel.