Australia: Shares slip as mining, energy stocks weigh

AUSTRALIAN shares fell on Friday, dragged down by mining and energy stocks on weak commodity prices as worries mounted that aggressive interest rate hikes would slow the global economy.

The S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.4 per cent lower at 6,539.90, extending loses to a third session, and posting a weekly drop of 0.6 per cent.

Miners slipped 2.3 per cent to hit a more than six-month low as iron ore futures tumbled in China. The sub-index fell 2.1 per cent for the week, marking its fourth straight week of losses.

Sector behemoths BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals shed between 2.3 per cent and 3 per cent on Friday.

Energy stocks slumped 3.4 per cent as oil prices fell, with Woodside Energy and Santos declining 4.4 per cent and 2.8 per cent, respectively.

Financials closed slightly higher after a sharp drop in the previous session, with two of the four big banks rising 0.4 per cent each.

Technology stocks advanced 0.2 per cent after a three-day slide, even after their US peers closed lower on Thursday.

Among individual stocks, buy-now-pay-later firm Openpay jumped 20.8 per cent after saying it would pause its U.S. operations and cut its workforce.

Meanwhile, a Reuters poll found that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will deliver another half percentage-point interest rate hike on Tuesday as it fights to tame surging inflation.

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After the RBA’s policy meeting next week, “I think we’ll see the Fed and the RBA pause or put a halt to the rate rises”, said Brad Smoling, managing director at Smoling Stockbroking.

Smoling said negative macroeconomic information might lead to money flooding back into the equity market.

New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 closed 1.1 per cent lower at 10,753.16 in its third straight session of fall. It declined 0.6 per cent this week. REUTERS