Australian Shares Follow Wall Street Lower
Australian stocks fell 49 points or 0.6% to 8,783 in early Thursday trade, reversing modest gains the day before following a weak Wall Street lead amid a broad selloff in AI and chip-related shares. Traders also turned cautious after RBA Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser warned inflation remains more persistent than expected, with September headline CPI at 4% strengthening expectations of another rate hike at the November meeting. Losses in energy, consumer durables, and tech outweighed gains in logistics, transport and healthcare. Three of the four major banks slipped between 0.4% and 0.7%, while Woodside Energy (-3.7%), Wesfarmers (- 2.2%) and Aristocrat Leisure (-1.2%) also posted declines. In contrast, Nextdc Ltd. climbed 6.4%, rebounding from its sharpest decline in nearly nine years, after reducing FY2027 guidance. Attention now turns to Australia’s flash October PMI data and comments from RBA Governor Bullock on Friday before parliament.
Australian stocks fell 49 points or 0.6% to 8,783 in early Thursday trade, reversing modest gains the day before following a weak Wall Street lead amid a broad selloff in AI and chip-related shares. Traders also turned cautious after RBA Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser warned inflation remains more persistent than expected, with September headline CPI at 4% strengthening expectations of another rate hike at the November meeting. Losses in energy, consumer durables, and tech outweighed gains in logistics, transport and healthcare.
Three of the four major banks slipped between 0.4% and 0.7%, while Woodside Energy (-3.7%), Wesfarmers (- 2.2%) and Aristocrat Leisure (-1.2%) also posted declines. In contrast, Nextdc Ltd. climbed 6.4%, rebounding from its sharpest decline in nearly nine years, after reducing FY2027 guidance. Attention now turns to Australia’s flash October PMI data and comments from RBA Governor Bullock on Friday before parliament.