Australian shares inched lower on Thursday after two straight sessions of gains, weighed down by technology stocks, while banking giant Westpac jumped after reporting first-quarter profit above estimates.
The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.2% to 7,074.7 by 1225 GMT, after rising 1.7% in the previous two sessions.
Technology stocks fell 5.3%, extending losses for the year so far to more than 20%, weighed down by ASX-listed shares of Block Inc and Xero Ltd. Block's Australian shares fell as much as 11.3%, tracking overnight losses in the company's US-listed shares.
Wall Street sentiment turned sour in post-market trade. Meta Platforms Inc plunged more than 20% after the Facebook owner missed its earnings estimate.
Australia shares likely to open higher, NZ shares gain
Meanwhile, Westpac Banking Corp rose as much as 3.6% and was headed for its best session Since Sept. 30, after the lender beat estimates for first-quarter profit and made headway in cutting costs. Financials were up 0.1% after declining as much as 1% in early trading.
Among other losers, gaming company Aristocrat Leisure dropped about 1% after its offer to buy Britain's Playtech Plc fell through.
Healthcare and energy stocks were down 1.4% and 0.7%, respectively.
However, mining stocks gained nearly 1%, benefiting from an uptick in copper and gold prices, with index heavyweights like Rio Tinto Ltd and global miner BHP Group Ltd rising 1.8% and 1.9% respectively.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.1%, or 10.6 points, to 12,300.24.
The country's prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, said there would be a phased reopening of its borders, which were closed for nearly two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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