Australian shares fell 1.1 percent on Wednesday to a near two-week low on fresh uncertainty over Europe's debt crisis on worries Greek voters may vote down the bailout plan hailed just a week ago. There was little positive news to shore up the market, with Australian building approvals sliding 13.6 percent in September, sharply below forecasts, and steel maker and iron ore producer OneSteel warning its first-half profit would dive.
The top banks bounced off their early lows to close down between 0.8 and 2.2 percent. Westpac Banking Corp fell with the rest of the market, though it reported a 7 percent rise in second-half profit, in line with market forecasts. Gold miners were among the top gainers, with St Barbara Mines up 4.6 percent and leading gold miner Newcrest Mining up 1.4 percent with gold prices jumping 1 percent on eurozone worries.
Top retailer Woolworths fell 1.2 percent to its lowest since July 2008 after its new chief flagged the group may sell its electronics chain Dick Smith, which has underperformed rival JB Hi-Fi for some time. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 lost 48.3 points to close at 4,184.6, taking this week's drop to 3.9 percent.
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