Australian shares fell on Tuesday, dragged by Woolworths Group as it forecast lower first-half operating income from its local food business, while tech stocks tracked their US peers lower.

The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.4% to 7,349.10 by 2351 GMT. The benchmark had closed 0.35% higher on Monday.

Shares of Woolworths, the country's biggest supermarket chain, slumped as much as 10.6% and were on track for their worst session in more than a decade, while rival Coles fell 5.5%.

Tech stocks slipped 0.5%, following a weaker finish on the Nasdaq as investors worried about the potential impact of the Omicron coronavirus variant ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting later this week.

Investors expect an increasingly hawkish tone out of the Fed's two-day meeting that wraps up on Wednesday.

The central bank is expected to signal a faster wind-down of asset purchases, which could also usher closer a start to interest rate hikes.

Sector heavyweight Afterpay led losses on the tech sub-index, falling as much as 3.5% to hit its lowest in more than six months.

Energy stocks eased 0.5%, tracking a dip in oil prices on worries that rising coronavirus cases could hit fuel demand.Sector majors Whitehaven Coal and Ampol were down 1.7% and 1.1%, respectively.

Financials were down 0.4%, with the big four banks losing between 0.1% and 0.8%.

In New Zealand, the benchmark stock index slipped 0.4% to 12,944.49, with industrials and financial stocks leading the losses.