Australian shares extend losses as miners, Woolworths slump

Australian equities slipped for an eighth consecutive session on Thursday, dragged down by miners and a drop in Woolworths’ shares after the top grocer scaled back its annual food earnings growth forecast.

The S&P/ASX 200 index was down 0.5% at 8,643.40 points, as of 0007 GMT.

The benchmark has gained nearly 2% so far this month, rebounding from a 7.8% plunge in March, as Middle East tensions sapped risk appetite.

Markets rebounded earlier this month on hopes of a US-Iran breakthrough, but an energy-driven first-quarter CPI print pushed inflation further from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s target and kept rate-hike expectations alive.

Traders now see a 78% chance of a 25-basis-point hike to 4.35% at the RBA meeting, due on Tuesday, with rates expected to climb to 4.60% by September, levels last seen in late 2011.

 Woolworths, the biggest grocer in Australia, said its fiscal 2026 domestic food segment earnings growth would no longer reach the upper end of the range due to fuel price pressures.

Shares of Woolworths slipped as much as 9.8% in early trade, driving consumer staples sub-index down 4.9% and emerging as one of the top losers in the benchmark.

Mining stocks fell 2.1%, tracking lower base metal prices overnight.

The sub-index, however, was on track to log a monthly gain of more than 5%.

Shares of BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue lost between 1.4% and 1.6%.

Mineral Resources rose as much as 9.6% to a nearly two-year high, the top performer in the mining sub-index, after the miner upgraded its production volume outlook for 2026. Energy firms rose 0.6% on rising crude prices.

Oil majors Woodside and Santos advanced as much as 3% and 1.9%, respectively. Financials rose 0.54%, limiting losses on the benchmark, with “Big Four” banks rising between 0.3% and 1.1%.

In contrast, gold stocks slipped 3.8% as dollar-priced bullion extended overnight losses after the US Federal Reserve kept its rate unchanged. New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index edged 0.1% higher to 12,779.7 points.