Australia shares fall as uncertainty over US-Iran talks lingers, BHP limits losses

Australian shares fell on Wednesday as uncertainty over Middle East peace talks persisted even as the U.S. said it would indefinitely extend a ceasefire with Iran, although the decline was limited by heavyweight miner BHP after it reported higher production.

The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.8% to 8,876.20 by 0025 GMT. The benchmark closed unchanged on Tuesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would indefinitely extend the ceasefire with Iran, hours before it was set to expire. While the announcement appeared to be unilateral, it was not immediately clear whether Iran or Israel would agree to extend the ceasefire.

Heavily weighted financials fell 1.1%, dragged by No.1 lender Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s 0.8% fall, while the remaining ‘big four’ shed between 0.7% and 0.9%.
Meanwhile, BHP climbed as much as 1.6% to a one-week high after the top miner posted a 3% rise in third-quarter iron ore production and maintained its outlook for the full year.

The mining sub-index was still down 0.7%, as gold stocks weighed after prices fell on a stronger dollar.

Gold producer Evolution Mining lost as much as 3.4%, while Northern Star Resources fell 2.3%.

In corporate news, hearing implant maker Cochlear plunged as much as 38.6% to a decade low after cutting its earnings forecasts for the year due to war-driven demand hits.

Cochlear dragged down the broader healthcare sub-index , which fell as much as 4.3% to its lowest since April 2018.

Bucking the trend, Treasury Wine soared as much as 19.8% after the luxury winemaker said it will shift to a new regional operating model from October 1, aiming to simplify its structure and lower costs.

Energy stocks were up 0.4%. Top fuel retailer Ampol jumped 4.4% after more than quadrupling refining margins at its Lytton refinery.

New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.5% to 12,865.03 points.