Australia: Shares edge lower as virus cases resurge in Sydney

[BENGALURU] Australian shares slipped marginally on Monday, with energy and financial stocks leading the declines, as a surge in Covid-19 cases in Sydney led states and territories to ban travellers from the city, stoking fears of a delayed economic recovery.

The S&P/ASX 200 index edged 0.06 per cent lower by 0009 GMT.

Projections of the Australian economy recovering from its first recession in three decades faster than previously anticipated were dismantled after Sydney, the country's most populous city, detected a new virus cluster which had grown to a count of around 70 as of Sunday.

The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) sent a stern "do not come to us" message to Sydney, warning its residents they would be quarantined for 14 days if they arrived.

The states of Victoria, Queensland, and the Northern Territory banned people arriving from Sydney as of Monday.

Among individual sectors and stocks, the energy sub-index fell as much as 1.8 per cent to its lowest in nearly three weeks, as oil prices slipped.

Woodside Petroleum shed about 2.5 per cent while Santos declined as much as 2.2 per cent.

The heavyweight financial index fell over 1 per cent to hit a near three-week low. The "Big Four" banks slid between 0.3 per cent and 1.1 per cent.

Limiting losses on the benchmark, the healthcare sector gained 0.5 per cent, with CSL rising 0.6 per cent and Resmed Inc climbing nearly 2 per cent to its highest since Dec 9.

Australian technology stocks added 1.2 per cent with Afterpay gaining over 5 per cent and Tech One rising nearly 2 per cent.

Meanwhile, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index dipped 0.02 per cent to 12,680.06. Kathmandu Holdings fell nearly 4 per cent to a three-week low.

A2 Milk lost as much as 5 per cent to hit its lowest since Jan 4, 2019, after Citi Research cut price target on the stock to A$9.50 from A$14.20, after the dairy company slashed its half-yearly and annual revenue outlook last week.

REUTERS