PERTH: The Australian sharemarket edged down almost half a per cent at the open, after concerns about China’s economic slowdown weighed on global bourses overnight.
At the 10.15am (AEDT) official market open, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 while the broader All Ordinaries fell 25 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 5210.6 points, while the broader All Ordinaries declined 22.4 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 5249.2 points.
Bell Direct equities analyst Julia Lee said the banks have also had a strong run recently and investors were profit taking.
“Most of the selling is coming from the financial space but I think what has stood out is the (mining-related) materials space,” she said.
“They are performing better-than-expected and that’s because of BHP’s strong quarterly numbers.
“The other area doing well is gold. Gold prices have risen while the Aussie dollar weakens which is good news for the gold players.”
Financials weighed heaviest on the market, losing 0.59 per cent, as investors continue to digest the government’s response to Murray inquiry.
Commonwealth Bank retreated 0.61 per cent at $75.27, while ANZ shares lost 0.88 per cent to $28.15.
National Australia Bank lost 0.91 per cent to $31.47 while Westpac fell 0.97 per cent to $30.55.
Consumer staples fell 0.51 per cent.
Wesfarmers lost 0.91 per cent to $40.12, while Woolworths gave up 0.3 per cent to $26.74.
Energy stocks also weighed, losing 0.5 per cent.
Oil Search shed 0.82 per cent to $7.24, while Santos slipped 0.19 per cent to $5.28.
Origin Energy added 0.93 per cent to $5.41 after it told shareholders at its annual general meeting that the board “agonised” over cutting dividends.
Materials bucked the braoder market weakness to add 0.3 per cent.
BHP Billiton added 0.29 per cent to $24.06, after it released an upbeat first-quarter production report, while Rio Tinto gave up 0.48 per cent to $51.89.
