Australian shares ended Wednesday's session in negative territory as losses in the Healthcare, Financials and Gold sectors pushed the benchmark lower.
At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 was down 1.18%.
Top and bottom movers
The session's strongest performers included Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX:TWE), which jumped 16.79% - up 0.68 points to finish at 4.73 at the close. Iluka Resources Ltd (ASX:ILU) advanced 4.44% or 0.34 points to end at 8.00, while Ampol Ltd (ASX:ALD) rose 3.83% or 1.21 points to close at 32.82.
On the downside, Cochlear Ltd (ASX:COH) suffered a steep drop of 39.04% - a fall of 65.57 points to trade at 102.37 at the close. Generation Development Group Ltd (ASX:GDG) declined 21.74% or 1.00 points to end at 3.60, and Bank Of Queensland Ltd. (ASX:BOQ) slipped 8.53% or 0.62 points to finish at 6.65.
Market breadth and benchmarks
Decliners outpaced advancers on the Sydney exchange, with 673 stocks falling versus 448 rising and 394 ending unchanged. Share prices in Cochlear reached five-year lows on the session, while Generation Development Group's shares fell to 52-week lows.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, increased 4.41% to 13.75.
Commodities and currencies
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for June delivery rose 1.40% or 66.04 to $4,785.64 a troy ounce. Crude oil for June delivery fell 1.01% or 0.91 to $88.76 a barrel, and the June Brent oil contract decreased 0.67% or 0.66 to trade at $97.82 a barrel.
On the foreign exchange front, AUD/USD was effectively unchanged, moving 0.13% to 0.72, while AUD/JPY rose 0.11% to 114.15. The US Dollar Index Futures fell 0.13% to 98.10.
Overall, Wednesday's session was characterized by broad-based pressure on the benchmark, a rise in implied volatility and notable single-stock volatility, with both outsized winners and large declines among S&P/ASX 200 constituents.