Australia: Shares flat as miners, tech stocks diverge; New Zealand falls for sixth day

[BENGALURU] Australian shares were largely unchanged on Tuesday as gains in heavyweight miners on the back of robust iron ore prices offset a slide in technology and financial stocks.

The S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.05 per cent at 7,303.2 points at 2327 GMT. The benchmark slipped to 0.3 per cent at close on Monday.

Australia's financial sub-index fell as much as 0.5 per cent, with lender Westpac Banking Corp losing up to 1.2 per cent after flagging a A$1.3 billion (S$1.3 billion) profit hit in the second half.

The country's second-largest lender by market capitalisation said it would take the one-off charge after its institutional banking unit quit energy trading, among other reasons.

The rest of Australia's 'Big Four' banks - National Australia Bank, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and Commonwealth Bank of Australia - were down between 0.4 per cent and 0.6 per cent.

Tech stocks fell for a second straight day, slipping as much as 1.3 per cent, after major Wall Street indices closed lower overnight.

Market darling Afterpay lost the most on the sub-index, falling as much as 2.6 per cent to its lowest levels since Oct 5.

Balancing the slide, Aussie miners climbed 1.6 per cent in their fourth straight session of gains as iron ore prices soared on supply fears.

BHP Group rose as much as 1.4 per cent, while Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals gained up to 1.8 per cent and 1.9 per cent, respectively.

Energy stocks inched 0.5 per cent higher, with Oil Search adding 1.2 per cent as oil prices rallied on surging demand.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell for a sixth consecutive session, losing 0.3 per cent, with cancer diagnostics firm Pacific Edge dipping about 2.1 per cent.

REUTERS