Australian shares closed slightly lower on Tuesday as central bank minutes pointed to more interest rate hikes, with mining and energy stocks leading the decline on China COVID concerns.
The S&P/ASX 200 index ended 0.1% lower at 7,141.60 after Monday’s 0.2% fall. Last week, the benchmark rose about 3.9% in its third straight weekly gain.
“Wall Street’s post-CPI rally has fizzled out, and the ASX looked overstretched to the upside by yesterday’s close, which left it ripe for a retracement,” said Matt Simpson, a market analyst at City Index.
Minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s Nov. 1 meeting showed the central bank expects to increase rates further over the period ahead in its effort to establish a more sustainable balance of demand and supply in the economy.
Australia will report its wage growth figures for the third quarter on Wednesday, with analysts expecting a 3% rise in wages from a year earlier, up from 2.6% in the previous quarter.
Australian shares hover at 5-month high; miners soar as China eases curbs
“A hotter wage rate could destabilise the assumption that the RBA will soon pause its tightening cycle, whilst a soft print will simply reinforce the view that the RBA will continue with 25-bp increments.”
Mining stocks fell 1.3% despite a rise in most base metal prices, as doubts about China’s COVID policy adjustments prevailed amid rising infections in the country. Sector majors BHP Group and Fortescue Metals Group fell 0.2% and 0.8%, respectively, while Rio Tinto rose 0.4%.
Energy stocks fell 0.9% as oil prices declined, with rising COVID-19 cases in China sparking fears of lower fuel consumption from the world’s top crude oil importer.
Financial stocks gained 0.3%. Commonwealth Bank of Australia rose 1.3% after the country’s largest lender reported better-than-expected cash earnings for the first quarter.
New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.1% to 11,239.14.
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