Australia: Shares slide as rising Europe Covid-19 cases caution investors

[BENGALURU] Australian shares fell on Monday to their lowest in over a week, as energy stocks dropped after a resurgence of Covid-19 cases across Europe stoked demand fears and hit risk appetite.

The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.5 per cent to 7,357.4 by 0040 GMT.

The energy index fell 2.1 per cent, tracking a sharp fall in oil prices as rising novel coronavirus cases in Europe threatened to slow the economic recovery.

Sector heavyweights Woodside Petroleum, Oil Search and Santos were down between 2.1 per cent and 3.3 per cent.

Travel stocks slid on worries of more lockdowns in Europe and spiking cases in the United States.

Flight Centre Travel Group, Webjet, Corporate Travel Management and carrier Qantas Airways dropped 1.8 per cent to 3 per cent.

Financial stocks followed suit, falling over 1.1 per cent, with all the so-called "Big Four" banks down between 0.7 per cent and 1.1 per cent.

Gold stocks shed 1.8 per cent after bullion prices fell to a one-week low on Friday.

Gold miner Silver Lake Resources dropped as much as 4.8 per cent, tracking its worst day since September, after acquiring credit facilities provided by BNP Paribas to Harte Gold Corp.

Meanwhile, Nickel Mines jumped to its highest in nearly seven months as it signed a multi-year memorandum of understanding with Shanghai Decent Investment.

AMP shares jumped as much as 3.5 per cent. The company said AMP Capital will remain as the manager of its Wholesale Office Fund.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was down 0.9 per cent at 12,630.7, with Meridian Energy hitting over 16-month low on selling its Australian unit for US$528 million.

In other markets, the S&P 500 E-minis futures were up 0.07 per cent.

REUTERS