Australian shares fell more than 1% on Monday in broad-based selling, as investors braced for a central bank policy meeting where it is widely expected to hike interest rates for the first time in more than a decade.
The S&P/ASX 200 index was down 1.3% at 7,338.40 by 0056 GMT after rising 1.1% on Friday, with technology and gold stocks leading the decline.
The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to raise interest rates on Tuesday, joining a long list of central banks now expected to tighten policies at a much faster pace than previously thought to tame surging inflation, a Reuters poll found.
Australian consumer prices surged at the fastest annual pace in two decades last quarter, likely prompting the central bank to move towards normalisation but as a consequence sparking fears of an economic slowdown.
Among losers on the benchmark, technology stocks dropped 3.5% after their US peers fell sharply at the end of last week as the biggest surge in monthly inflation since 2005 spooked investors already worried about rate hikes.
Commodity slump, China COVID fears drag Australian shares 2% lower
ASX-listed shares of Block Inc lost 3.5%, while Xero Ltd dived more than 4%.
Financials sank 1%, with the “Big Four” lenders losing between 0.5% and 1%. National Australia Bank lost up to 1.1% as the lender entered a deal with the country’s financial crime regulator to address concerns around suspected serious breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism laws.
Miners dropped 1.4%, with BHP Group, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group down between 0.5% and 1.4%.
Meanwhile, Qantas Airways jumped up to 4.4% as the carrier signed a landmark deal with Airbus SE to buy 12 A350-1000 planes capable of the world’s longest commercial flights from Sydney to London.
Gold stocks fell almost 2% as bullion prices dipped on pressure from elevated U.S Treasury yields. New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was down 0.5% to 11,822.76.
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