Australia: Shares slip on dour US data, overnight oil slump

[BENGALURU] Australian shares extended falls on Thursday as downbeat US economic data dashed hopes for a pickup in business activity, while an overnight slump in crude oil prices weighed on energy stocks.

The S&P/ASX 200 index slipped for a second straight session and was down 0.5 per cent to 5,356.2 by 1213 GMT.

Overnight, the S&P 500 and the Dow fell after data showed US private employers laid off a record 20.2 million workers in April, and remarks by President Donald Trump that cast doubt on a trade deal signed in January with China.

In Australia, energy stocks were the top losers with a drop of more than 2 per cent, after oil fell 4 per cent to below US$30 a barrel on Wednesday as US crude stockpiles ticked up and diesel inventories swelled.

Oil Search led the fall with a decline of 3.4 per cent, followed by Santos Ltd, down 2.5 per cent.

Fuel supplier Viva Energy dropped up to 3 per cent after posting a sharp decline in April jet fuel sales amid falling demand.

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Gold stocks slipped 1 per cent to snap three straight sessions of gains, following a drop in bullion prices overnight.

Dacian Gold shed nearly 5 per cent, while index heavyweight Newcrest Mining fell 1.6 per cent.

Financial stocks fell 1.3 per cent, tracking peers in the United States. The "big four" lenders slipped between 1 per cent and 1.8 per cent.

The number of issues on the ASX that advanced were 356 while 445 declined as a 0.8-to-1 ratio favoured decliners. There were 47 new highs and 38 new lows.

In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.5 per cent to 10,620.2.

Mobile payment solutions provider Pushpay Holdings was the top gainer on the benchmark index, rising for a fourth straight session to hit a record high.

REUTERS