ASX Starts the Week Down as Miners Weigh
The Australian sharemarket opened lower on Monday as lower commodity prices weighed on local stocks ahead of the federal government’s mid-year budget and economic update.
The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 49.5 points, or 0.6% to 8647.80 at 10.10am AEDT as all 11 sectors traded down.
Materials slumped as copper fell more than 3% on Friday as a risk-off tone swept markets, with a sell-off in artificial intelligence-focused stocks triggering profit taking across the base metals complex, according to ANZ. BHP dropped 1.6%, Rio Tinto 1.1% and South32 by 1.4%. Fortescue fell 0.8% as it struck a binding deal to acquire the remaining 64% of Alta Copper it does not already own at $C1.4 per share, moving to full control of the Canadian-listed developer via a plan of arrangement.
Technology all weighed as NextDC dropped 2.2%, WiseTech Global 1.6% and Xero by 1%.
The major banks were mixed as Commonwealth Bank fell 0.5%, but National Australia Bank was up 0.1%, Westpac by 0.3% and ANZ 0.5%. Also in financials, ASX Limited dropped 2.9% as it agreed to a reset of its governance structure following an interim report by ASIC. Under the plans it will need to hold an additional $150 million in capital until agreed milestones are met. ASX will also cut its dividend payout ratio to 75 to 85%.
Stocks in focus
In company news, Westgold Resources rose 0.4% as it received approval to demerge its non-core Reedy and Comet gold assets into a new ASX-listed company, Valiant Gold, with an initial public offering planned for the March quarter.
Tyro Payments fell 1% as it will acquire Thriday, an AI-powered financial management platform for SMEs that automates invoicing, expense management, accounting, and banking workflows.
IperionX fell 1.5% as it secured a prototype purchase order from Carver Pump Company to produce titanium components for US Navy pump systems, marking the start of a formal prototyping project.
4D Medical rose 2.7% as it received Canadian regulatory approval for CT:VQ, which allows for immediate commercial deployment across Canada through the company’s strategic partnership with Philips.
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