SYDNEY: The Australian share market is trading slightly softer at noon, weighed down by a significant sell-off in resources stocks and a sluggish financial sector.
At 12.05pm (AEST), the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index edged down 4.5 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 5,956.2, while the broader All Ordinaries index slipped 5.1 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 5,923.2.
“The market is struggling to gain enough momentum to break the 6,000 level due to the lack of influence for a rate cut domestically and weak offshore leads,” HC Securities senior private client adviser, Mark Lennox, said.
“The financial sector, which represents 48.5 per cent of the ASX200 index, is struggling to provide the necessary momentum to break the 6,000 level,” he said.
Energy stocks weighed most heavily on the local market, shedding 1.14 per cent as a sector OIL PRICES plunged 6 per cent overnight.
