SYDNEY: Australian shares fell 0.4 percent on Monday after the biggest Chinese trade deficit in at least a decade underscored concerns that a slowdown in China could hurt the local economy and as strong US jobs data lessened the case for easing by the Federal Reserve.
China's trade balance plunged $31.5 billion into the red in February as imports swamped exports, although some economists have cautioned against reading too much in to the data given underlying volatility caused by the Chinese Lunar New Year holidays.
"The export slump underscores concerns about slowing global demand and cooling growth in China," Stan Shamu, strategist at IG Markets said.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index fell 15.3 points to 4,196.7, according to latest available data and was poised to put in its fourth daily fall in six sessions. The benchmark rose 1 percent on Friday.
China is Australia's top trade partner and the largest consumer of its resources.
Worries that China's voracious demand for metals and commodities could be tempered in a slowdown helped pushed global miner Rio Tinto 0.7 percent lower to A$63.7. Mid-sized resource stocks were among the worst hit with Coalspur Minerals dropping 2.8 percent.
Recent data showed China's inflation cooled in February, while retail sales and industrial output came in below forecast.
Loan demand could also be threatened by a China slowdown as the resource and mining services sectors are among the few sectors that are fuelling loan demand for banks.
Top banks were all lower. Largest lender National Australia Bank led declines with a 0.9 percent drop.
Interpid Mines, which owns 80 percent of the Tujuh Bukit mining concessions in Indonesia, dropped over 2 percent. Indonesia's government offered a clearer view of a new regulation that limits foreign ownership in mines to no more than 49 percent, saying the rule applies to existing as well as new contracts.
Graincorp climbed 4.2 percent following a surge in shares of rival Canadian firm Viterra. Viterra said it has received expressions of interest from third parties on a possible takeover which led to talk that Graincorp might be the next target.
Shares in Cockatoo Coal gained 12.3 percent to A$ 0.41 after South Korea's SK Networks Co Ltd said it has decided to buy a 40 percent stake in the firm for A$313 million ($332 million)
New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index rose 0.5 percent to 3,452.4 points.
Data on Friday showed solid growth in US non farm payrolls, suggesting the world's largest economy was strengthening and in less need of further monetary stimulus from the Fed, which holds a policy meeting on Tuesday.
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