After a fairly smart upmove on the back of a positive lead from Wall Street, the Australian stock market retreated on Wednesday, with a bigger than expected deficit in the federal budget hurting sentiment.
Financial, healthcare, information technology and property trusts stocks are trading higher, while mining and industrial stocks are mostly trading weak. Energy and consumer discretionary stocks are mixed.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index, which surged to 5,249.6 in early trades, is currently down 26.8 points or 0.5 percent at 5,194.2. The broader All Ordinaries index is down 28.2 points or 0.5 percent at 5,174.3, well off an early high of 5,229.8.
Among bank stocks, ANZ Bank, Westpac (WBK), National Australia Bank and Commonwealth Bank of Australia are trading higher by 0.8 to 1.2 percent. Commonwealth Bank of Australia announced that its third-quarter profit rose 12 percent from the year-ago period to A$1.9 billion.
Bendigo & Adelaide Bank and Bank of Queensland are up 1 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.
Among miners, BHP Billiton (BHP) is down 1.6 percent, Rio Tinto (RIO) is trading lower by 2.5 percent, Fortescue Metals is down with a loss of 4 percent and Newcrest Mining is trading lower by about 2.5 percent.
In the energy sector, Woodside Petroleum, Santos, Oil Search and Origin Energy are up 0.8 to 1.2 percent, while Caltex Australia is trading in negative territory with a loss of 1.3 percent.
UGL Limited shares are down as much as 14 percent following the company lowering its full-year earnings outlook. Monadelphous Group, Downer EDI, Atlas Iron and ALS are down 4 to 6 percent. PanAust is down with a loss of 3.6 percent.
Leighton Holdings, Sims Metal Management, Perseus Mining, Regis Resources, Alumina (AWC), David Jones and Lynas Corp. are down 2.3 to 3 percent.
Carsales.Com is trading more than 3 percent up. Among other prominent gainers, APA Group is up 3 percent, AMP is adding 2.7 percent and Treasury Wine Estates is up 2.3 percent.
In economic news, Australia's Q1 numbers for wage costs and April figures for new motor vehicle sales are due for release during the day. Wage costs are expected to add 0.8 percent on quarter and 3.3 percent on year after rising 0.8 percent on quarter and 3.4 percent on year in the previous three months. New motor vehicle sales were down 0.6 percent on month and up 4.5 percent on year in March.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar opened slightly weak against the U.S. dollar. In early trades, the Aussie was quoting at US$0.9892, down from Monday's close of US$0.9980.
On Wall Street, stocks moved notably higher on Tuesday, with traders reacting positively to 'bullish' comments about the economy from hedge fund manager David Tepper. The gains lifted the Dow and the S&P 500 to new record highs, while the Nasdaq set another new twelve-year high.
The Dow advanced 123.6 points or 0.8 percent to 15,215.3, the Nasdaq rose 23.8 points or 0.7 percent to 3,462.6 and the S&P 500 jumped 16.6 points or 1 percent to 1,650.3.
Major European markets too ended higher on Tuesday. The French CAC 40 index gained 0.5 percent, while the German DAX index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index moved up by 0.7 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.
U.S. crude oil slipped for a fourth straight day to end lower on Tuesday, mostly on demand growth concerns and with the dollar strengthening against some major currencies. Crude for June delivery ended down $0.96 or 1.0 percent at $94.21 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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Market Analysis
June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.