Aussie shares end flat as banks offset losses in commodities; July inflation slows to 4-mth low
Miners lose 1.1%
Financials rise 0.8%
Local inflation slowed to a four-month low in July
Updates to close
By Rajasik Mukherjee
Aug 28 (Reuters) -Australian shares ended flat on Wednesday as gains in banking stocks were offset by losses in commodities, while domestic inflation slowed to a four-month low in July.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO closed at 8,071.4 points. The benchmark settled 0.2% lower on Tuesday.
Australia's consumer price index (CPI) rose at an annual pace of 3.5% in July, down from 3.8% in June.
The figure was slightly above forecasts of 3.4%, leading markets to slightly lengthen the odds of a first easing from the Reserve Bank of Australia in November to 48.4% from 58% earlier.
Meanwhile, heavyweight miners .AXMM fell 1.1% as investors turned cautious ahead of data that will show whether steel demand in top consumer China is recovering.
Top miner Fortescue FMG.AX fell 1% despite reporting a higher annual profit.
"We are moving into overall weak market cycle into September, and miners are unable to hold recent bounce with weak outlook for steel and iron ore," Mathan Somasundaram, CEO of Deep Data Analytics, said.
Energy stocks .AXEJ shed 1.4%, weighed down by a 0.7% loss in Santos STO.AX and 1.2% fall in Woodside Energy WDS.AX.
Global oil prices were also under pressure as fears of reduced demand for energy worried traders. O/R
In contrast, rate-sensitive financials .AXFJ ended 0.8% higher. Westpac Banking Corp WBC.AX was the top gainer among the "Big Four" lenders, rising 1.1%.
Among individual stocks, retailer Woolworths WOW.AX gained 3.3% after announcing a special dividend, while miner Lynas LYC.AX rose 3.4% after posting a smaller-than-expected drop in annual profit.
Wagering firm Tabcorp TAH.AX shed 15% as it swung to a full-year loss.
Australia's earnings season is at its fag end, with top companies like BHP Group and Woodside Energy WDS.AX having reported their results earlier this week.
"Investors are a bit scared as volatility has been high during reporting season. Stocks that beat expectations are up 5-10% while missing gets you 15-20% drop," Deep Data Analystics' Somasundaram said.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 ended up 0.2% at 12,470.6 points.
Reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema
For more information on DIARIES & DATA: U.S. earnings diary RESF/US Wall Street Week Ahead .N/O Global Economy Week Ahead DATA/ ................................................................ For latest top breaking news across all markets NEWS1
Aset Terkait
Berita Terbaru
Pengungkapan: Entitas XM Group menyediakan layanan khusus eksekusi dan akses ke Fasilitas Trading Online kami, yang memungkinkan Anda untuk melihat dan/atau menggunakan konten yang tersedia pada atau melalui situs, yang tidak untuk mengubah atau memperluas, serta tidak mengubah atau memperluas hal tersebut. Akses dan penggunaan ini selalu sesuai dengan: (i) Syarat dan Ketentuan; (ii) Peringatan Risiko; dan (iii) Pengungkapan Penuh. Oleh karena itu, konten disediakan hanya sebagai informasi umum. Anda juga harus ketahui bahwa konten Fasilitas Trading Online kami bukan sebagai ajakan atau tawaran untuk untuk melakukan transaksi apa pun di pasar finansial. Trading di pasar finansial mana pun melibatkan tingkat risiko yang signifikan pada modal Anda.
Semua materi yang diterbitkan di Fasilitas Trading Online kami hanya untuk tujuan edukasi/informasi dan tidak boleh mengandung nasihat dan rekomendasi finansial, pajak investasi atau trading, catatan harga trading kami, penawaran, permintaan, transaksi dalam instrumen finansial apa pun atau promo finansial untuk Anda yang tidak diminta.
Konten pihak ketiga apa pun, serta konten yang disiapkan oleh XM, seperti opini, berita, riset, analisis, harga, informasi lain atau link ke situs pihak ketiga yang tersedia "sebagaimana adanya", sebagai komentar pasar umum dan bukan menjadi nasihat investasi. Sejauh konten apa pun ditafsirkan sebagai penelitian investasi, Anda harus memperhatikan dan menerima bahwa konten tersebut tidak dimaksudkan dan belum disiapkan sesuai dengan persyaratan hukum yang dirancang untuk mempromosikan kemandirian riset investasi dan dengan demikian akan dianggap sebagai komunikasi pemasaran di bawah hukum dan peraturan yang relevan. Mohon dipastikan bahwa Anda telah membaca dan memahami Notifikasi pada Riset Investasi Non-Independen dan Peringatan Risiko kami mengenai informasi di atas, yang dapat diakses disini.
