Australian shares finished the trading day lower on Thursday, driven by declines in the Gold, Financials and Energy sectors that collectively weighed on the broader market.
At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.26%.
The session's strongest performers on the S&P/ASX 200 included Life360 Inc (ASX:360), which climbed 12.35% or 2.34 points to close at 21.29. Wisetech Global Ltd (ASX:WTC) gained 12.11% or 4.84 points, finishing at 44.80. Zip Co Ltd (ASX:ZIP) rose 11.41% or 0.21 points to end the day at 2.05.
On the downside, Reece Ltd (ASX:REH) fell 5.92% or 0.82 points to 13.04 at the close. Newmont Corporation DRC (ASX:NEM) dropped 4.87% or 8.06 points to finish at 157.36, and James Hardie Industries PLC (ASX:JHX) declined 4.44% or 1.30 points to 27.95.
Market internals showed more stocks advancing than falling on the Sydney exchange, with 643 names higher, 497 lower and 399 unchanged.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX - a measure of implied volatility for S&P/ASX 200 options - eased 6.10% to 13.51, marking a new one-month low for that gauge.
Commodities saw mixed movement. Gold futures for June delivery were up 0.31% or 14.94 to $4,838.54 a troy ounce. In oil markets, crude for May delivery rose 0.35% or 0.32 to $91.61 a barrel, while the June Brent contract edged up 0.04% or 0.04 to trade at $94.97 a barrel.
Currency pairs and the dollar index showed modest activity. AUD/USD was unchanged 0.24% to 0.72, and AUD/JPY ticked higher by 0.08% to 114.10. The US Dollar Index Futures remained flat at 97.85, unchanged on the session at 0.00%.
Below are key takeaways from the trading day:
- Index movement - The S&P/ASX 200 ended the day down 0.26%.
- Top gainers - Life360, Wisetech Global and Zip were the session's strongest performers.
- Top decliners - Reece, Newmont Corporation DRC and James Hardie were among the largest percentage losers.