After an early fall and a subsequent recovery, the Australian stock market faltered again and is currently trading weak on Wednesday with investors staying wary of holding positions at higher levels amid worries about global economic growth.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index, which recovered to around 4,291 after a weak start, is currently down 18.1 points or 0.4% at 4,258. The broader All Ordinaries index is down 17.7 points or 0.4% at 4,282.
On Tuesday, the S&P/ASX 200 index ended up 54 points or 1.3% at 4,276.1, while the All Ordinaries index gained 49.1 points or 1.2% to close at 4,299.7.
Among bank stocks, ANZ Bank and Westpac are up with modest gains, while National Australia Bank and Commonwealth Bank of Australia are trading flat. Bank of Queensland is up marginally and Bendigo & Adelaide Bank is down by about 1%, while diversified financial stock Macquarie Group is down with a marginal loss.
Among top miners, BHP Billiton is up 1.3%, Rio Tinto is gaining about 1.7% and Fortescue Metals is up 0.5%, while Newcrest Mining is trading weak. Bluescope Steel, Incitec Pivot and Orica are trading around their previous closing prices.
In the energy space, Oil Search, Origin Energy and Santos are trading lower, while Woodside Petroleum is up with a modest gain.
Aristocrat Leisure, Seek, Crown Limited, Transfield Services, Lend Lease Group and Brambles are trading weak, while Qantas Airways and Leighton Holdings are trading notably higher.
On the economic front, Australia's construction sector slipped into contraction in June, according to a report released Wednesday by the Australian Industry Group. The AIG's performance of Construction index declined 6.8 points to a reading of 46.4. The decline follows three straight months of expansion.
AIG said the house building sub-index fell 13.9 points to 43.3, following 10 straight months of growth. The apartment building sub-index contracted for the second straight month. AIG attributed the declines to tight credit conditions and subdued demand. Engineering construction and commercial construction both strengthened.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar opened notably higher, boosted by a positive reaction to the Reserve Bank of Australia's decision on Tuesday to hold the cash rate steady. In early trades, the Aussie was quoting at US$0.8531-US$0.8532, up from Tuesday's close of US$0.8452-US$0.8455. The Australian dollar is currently trading at 0.8491 to the U.S. dollar.
Among other markets in the Asia-Pacific region, Japan, Singapore and South Korea are trading weak. New Zealand is up with modest gains, while Shanghai, Taiwan and Malaysia are trading flat. Markets across the region had ended notably higher on Tuesday.
On Wall Street, stocks posted moderate gains on Tuesday as bargain hunting after last week's losses pushed up prices. However, a disappointing report on service sector activity and caution ahead of earnings season capped the upside.
The Dow rose 57.1 points or 0.6% to 9,743.6, the Nasdaq edged up by 2.1 points or 0.1% to 2,093.9 and the S&P 500 ended up 5.5 points or 0.5% to 1,028.06.
Major European markets saw strong gains on Tuesday. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index and the French CAC 40 index advanced by 2.9% and 2.7% respectively, while the German DAX index gained 2.2%.
Crude oil reverses early gains to end a touch below US$72 a barrel Tuesday, extending its losing streak to a seventh session. Light, sweet crude for August delivery settled at US$71.98 a barrel, down US$0.16 on the session, after trading as high as US$73.86.
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