Australian shares struggled for direction on Monday, as losses in miners countered gains in energy stocks, while investors awaited quarterly inflation data due later in the week for further policy direction.
The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 2.0 points to 7,311.4 by 0050 GMT after rising 0.1% last week. Inflation data due on Tuesday is expected to play a key role in the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) monetary policy decision next month.
UBS expects the Australian central bank to hike the cash rate by 25 basis points, to a peak of 4.35%, while ANZ’s view of an extended pause remains unchanged amid some early signs of easing in tight labour market conditions.
“We expect CPI data this week to show inflation moderated in the second quarter,” analysts at ANZ said. Globally, market participants expect the US Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 25 basis points at the end of its July 25-26 meeting.
In Sydney, energy stocks rose 1.4% after a 2% jump in oil prices on Friday, buoyed by growing evidence of supply shortages in the coming months and rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine that could further hit supplies.
Australian shares fall, gold and energy stocks top decliners
Index heavyweights Santos and Woodside Energy were up 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively. Gold stocks ticked 0.2% higher, with the country’s largest gold miner Newcrest Mining gaining about 1.3%.
Heavyweight miners declined about 0.7%, weighed down by worries about China’s faltering property sector and steel production restrictions.
Sector majors BHP Group and Rio Tinto slipped 0.2% and 0.7%, respectively.
Among individual stocks, South32 fell as much as 2.6% after the diversified miner flagged a non-cash impairment expense of about $1.3 billion in fiscal 2023 at its Hermosa project in Arizona.
In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.4% to 11,993.23.
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