The Australian market is trimming the early losses in mid-market moves on Thursday, extending the losses in the previous seven sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling well below the 8,700 level, with weakness in mining stocks partially offset by gains in financial and technology stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 15.90 points or 0.18 percent to 8,671.10, after hitting a low of 8,638.20 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 19.50 points or 0.22 percent to 8,896.20. Australian stocks ended modestly lower on Wednesday.
Among major miners, Rio Tinto, Fortescue and BHP Group are losing almost 2 percent each, while Mineral Resources is advancing more than 5 percent.
Oil stocks are mixed. Beach energy is edging up 0.4 percent and Santos is gaining almost 21 percent each, while Woodside Energy and Origin Energy are edging down 0.1 to 0.2 percent each. In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block and Zip are edging up 0.1 to 0.2 percent each, while WiseTech Global is advancing more than 5 percent and Xero is gaining more than 1 percent each. Appen is plummeting more than 27 percent on first-quarter sales update and guidance.
Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and National Australia Bank are gaining almost 1 percent each, while ANZ Banking is adding almost 2 percent.
Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources are losing almost 3 percent each, while Newmont is slipping more than 1 percent, Genesis Minerals is sliding more than 5 percent and Resolute Mining is declining more than 4 percent.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.712 on Thursday.
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Market Analysis
April 24, 2026 15:15 ET Economics news flow was relatively light this week even as the conflict in the Middle East continued, raising concerns for policymakers. In the U.S., spending data, initial jobless claims and pending home sales were the highlights. Business confidence in the biggest euro area economy was in focus in Europe. Inflation data from Japan gained attention in Asia.