SYDNEY: Australian stocks lost 0.55 percent Wednesday as investors followed mixed leads from other markets awaiting developments from the troubled eurozone and ongoing efforts to tackle its debt crisis.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 lost 23.3 points at 4,204.3 after a mixed session on Wall Street, with resources and energy stocks weighing on the market.
"As expected, today the local market has drifted," said IG Markets analyst Cameron Peacock.
"It's been driving uphill over the last week, but when the foot comes off the gas it starts to roll backward and that's a bit of what we're seeing today."
Markets had still likely turned a corner, he added, with fresh optimism that European leaders will find a solution to the region's debt crisis.
"Pullbacks such as those we have witnessed today are likely to be fleeting," Peacock said.
BHP Billiton finished down 0.83 percent, Rio Tinto eased 0.79 percent and Woodside Petroleum was 0.65 percent weaker.
The major banks were also mostly lower, with only Commonwealth Bank bucking the trend to gain 0.44 percent.
The commodities-linked Australian dollar was trading at 99.38 US cents late Wednesday, losing ground after Slovakia rejected changes to the eurozone's financial bailout fund.
It edged above parity with the greenback for the first time since September 22 on Tuesday, hitting an overnight high of 100.15 US cents before easing back to 99.76 cents in later trade.
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