Australian Stock Market News: ASX Sectors Turn Into A Red Sea

August 3: ASX Falls as US Credit Rating Slumps

The ASX200 saw all 11 sectors in the red yesterday, following a harsh blow to the US market. 

Leading credit rating company Fitch cut its US credit rating from AAA to AA+, downgrading the nation’s economic outlook. What followed was the S&P 500 experiencing its worst day of trading since April this year, falling 1.4%.

It’s a drop that rippled through to the Australian market: upon closing on Wednesday, the ASX200 saw all sectors in the red.

It ended the day down 96 points to 7355, or -1.3%. 

Upon opening on Thursday the ASX200 fell again, this time down 21.2 points to 7333.4 (-0.21%) at 10:04am. As of midday Thursday, nine of the 11 sectors were still creating a sea of red.

By the day’s end of trading, the S&P/ASX200 had dropped another 42.80 points to 7,311.80 (-0.58%). The index now sits 3.38% below its 52-week high.

July 7: Sea of Red as Index Hits 50-day Low

It was a bad ending to the week on the local markets, as the ASX closed sharply down on Friday following fears the US Federal reserve would hike rates further.

By close, the ASX200 was down 120.60 points or 1.68% to 7,042.80—a 50-day low. The worst performing stocks were Block Inc, down 5.46% and Pinnacle Investment Management down 5.23%.

It was a similar story all day. At opening, the ASX was down just under 2% at the start of trade, which amounted to the biggest one-day loss in four months.

Miners led the billions of dollars in sell-offs, and there were no lights on the horizon with all sectors in the red.

By midday the S&P/ASX 200 was down 113 points, or 1.6% to 7050. Some 189 of the top 200 stocks were still in the red more than two hours into trading.

The index has lost -2.23% over the last five days.

The impetus for the poor performance was better-than-expected US labour market data, which increased the chances the US Federal Reserve would lift rates to rein-in inflation.

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June 22: Tech Stocks and Miners Weigh on Index

The ASX closed down on Thursday after Wall Street took a dive on the back of news that further interest rate hikes may be necessary.

The S&P/ASX200 dropped 119.40 points or 1.63% to 7,195.50 on Thursday, which as the ASX Market Watch noted, was below its 125-day moving average.

Johns Lyng was down by 11.76% and Gold Road Resources fell by 8.31%. Over the last five days, the index has gained .28% but is 4.92% off of its 52-week high.

Miners weighed heavily on the index after a drop in the iron ore price, with BHP falling 2.2%, Rio Tinto down 1.2% and Fortescue down 1.6%.

Meanwhile Wall Street fell overnight, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq bearing the brunt of the losses in the wake of news that the US Federal Reserve was considering lifting rates further.

US Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell, said he was “strongly committed to bringing inflation back down to our 2% goal”.

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May 26: ASX Rallies To End Week On High

The S&P/ASX200 finished the week in a much better position that it started, gaining almost 14 points, or .18%, on Friday to finish at 7,151.

It came on the back of a subdued few weeks on the ASX, in which the market dropped to a new 20-day low.

Among the best performing stocks on Friday were Brainchip Holdings up 4.94% and Megaport, which rose by 4.66%. The index has lost 1.75% over the last five days, but, as the ASX points out, it has still gained 1.61% over the year to date.

Meanwhile, retail sales in Australia were stagnant in April, according to figures by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, that highlight how inflation is starting to flow on to households.

According to the data, spending remained flat in April, while there was a 0.2% and 0.4% rise in February and March respectively. Asia-Pacific economist at Indeed, Callam Pickering, told the ABC that the dire figures show that NSW and Victoria in the grip of a “retail recession”.

Commonwealth Bank is betting that the data, alongside other economic indicators, will be enough to deter the RBA from lifting rates when they meet in two weeks’ time. CBA is estimating a 90% chance the RBA will hold the cash rate steady, and a mere 10% chance of a 25 basis points increase.

Mortgage-holders will be hoping he’s right.

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April 17: ASX Hits Five-Week High

It’s been a stellar few weeks on the ASX, with gold miners and banking stocks helping to lift the index to a fresh high.

By close of trade on Friday, the ASX200, the leading benchmark of the index, was up .5% or 37 points—taking the index to 7361.6—which represented a five-week high. The index rose 1.72% all up for the week to Friday.

It came as the price of gold bullion hit $US2,007.78—not far off the record set in August 2020 of $US2075 an ounce.

On Monday, the strong performance continued with banks leading the gains. By 1pm, ANZ was up 1.3%, CBA was up 0.7%, while NAB had climbed 0.2%, according to the ABC.

By close at 4pm, the S&P/ASX200 had gained 19.90 points, or 0.27% to reach 7,381.50. According to the ASX, the index has gained 2.12% over the last five days, and is 3.32% off of its 52-week high.

April 14: Musk Brings Trading To Twitter

Twitter, the microblogging website bought last year by Elon Musk for $US44 billion, has teamed up with investing website eToro to enable Twitter users to see real-time prices instantly for stocks and shares, cryptocurrencies and other assets, such as exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and commodities.

Starting today, a new ‘$Cashtag’ feature will be introduced on the Twitter app that will enable users to view market charts on a range of financial instruments, and to click through to eToro to see more information about the asset in question and have the option to invest.

A $Cashtag is a stock market ticker symbol preceded by a dollar sign. The $Cashtag for another Musk-owned company, Tesla, for example, is $TSLA.

An eToro spokesperson said that the move would eventually cover more than just US stocks, so it’s likely that Australian stocks and shares will be available soon.

“The partnership will hopefully see thousands of tickers working as ‘cashtags’ with a route to the eToro platform to learn more. These are being added in a gradual process,” they said.

The spokesperson also acknowledged that the announcement had not gone quite to plan. “There have been a couple of teething issues including crypto cashtags not being live, which we’re working on resolving with Twitter.”

Elon Musk recently told a financial conference that he wants Twitter to become “the biggest financial institution in the world”. Musk also confirmed this week that Twitter has ceased to exist as a registered company, folding it into a shell firm called X Corp and fuelling speculation as to what he plans to do with the site. Musk is both president of the firm and its parent, X Holdings Corp.

Twitter added pricing data for $Cashtags in December 2022. Since then, according to the company, the feature has seen widespread adoption with more than 420 million searches for the term since the start of 2023.

Twitter said that search activity increases around prominent earnings announcements. For example, when the technology giant Apple made public its earnings figures for the final quarter of 2022—on February 2—searches for $Cashtags jumped to eight million.

Twitter added that the most commonly used $Cashtag was $TSLA (Tesla), with $SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF) and $BTC (Bitcoin) also ranking in the top five.

Related: Can I Buy Twitter (TWTR) Stocks & Shares?

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April 4: Index Rebounds Following Relief For Borrowers

The ASX 200 was up on Tuesday, following news that the Reserve Bank of Australia’s Board had decided to pause interest rate hikes and hold the cash rate steady at 3.6%.

Despite the RBA flagging the potential for further hikes this year to tame inflation, the ASX 200 was up .15% to 7,234.4 points immediately after the announcement. By close, the index was up by 13 points or 0.18% to finish at 7,236.00

According to the ASX, the best stocks of the day were Whitehaven Coal, up 5.44% and New Hope Corporation, which lifted 5.01%. Over the last five days, the index has gained 2.87% and is up 2.80% for the year to date.

It came as new data by eToro revealed that number of Australian retail investors holding locally listed stocks has fallen by 20% in the past year, while the popularity of other asset classes, such as foreign bonds, commodities & FX has increased on the platform.

The percentage of Australian retail investors with exposure to domestic equities has fallen from 64% in Q1 of 2022 to 51% in Q1 2023—although Australian investors continue to be among the world’s most invested in local shares. 

The survey which included 1,000 Australian investors also revealed that a bias for Australian equities was more pronounced among older investors.

Some 40% of investors aged 35 to 44 are invested in home-grown equities, and only 31% of 18-to-34-year-olds have their money in the local market. This compares to 66% for investors aged 55 and older, and 56% for those aged 45 to 54.

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March 28: ASX Lifts by Almost 1%, Lithium Stocks Surge

News that North Carolina-based lender First Citizens had entered an agreement to buy Silicon Valley Bank was welcomed by Wall Street on Monday and calmed the ASX at open.

Among the best performers locally today was Liontown Resources up an astonishing 68% and United Malt Group, which gained 31.10%. The surge came after two take-over bids: Liontown Resources rejected a bid valuing it at $5.5 billion—a figure which the company considered too low—while United Malt Group received a takeover offer that valued it at $1.5 billion.

The Liontown news flowed onto other ASX-listed lithium stocks, with many companies lifting by close. Pilbara Minerals was up 12.2%, Allkem lifted by 14.6% while Sayona Mining and Core Lithium were up 10.8% and 15.4% respectively. Overall, on the index, energy was up 4%, while the materials sector lifted 1.8%. All sectors except healthcare finished higher.

Over the last five days, the index has gained 1.02%, but as ASX Market Watch notes, the index remains “virtually unchanged over the last year to date”.

The Aussie dollar rose around 0.6%.

Meanwhile, chair of regulator APRA, John Lonsdale, was at great pains to distance our local banking sector from the instability of overseas banks in recent weeks, including the takeover of giant Credit Suisse.

“We might be connected, but their issues and problems are not necessarily ours,” he told the AFR Banking Summit.

“It’s also why, as new challenges present—whether climate, cyber or sharply rising interest rates — you can trust that APRA will act decisively to help keep deposits safe.” 

Also peaking at the summit, Westpac CEO Peter King said Australia’s banks were in a solid position.

“Because we’re all well advanced on our funding programs for this year, we can sit it out,” he says.

“We’ve got to be cautious on funding, we’ve got to be ready to go back into the wholesale markets when they’re ready for us, but no-one’s pressured to do that at the moment.”

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March 21: Energy and Mining Stocks Lead the Lifters

The ASX 200 closed up on Tuesday, buoyed by signs of stability in the international banking sector and the release of formal remarks by RBA Governor, Philip Lowe, that the Board was considering pausing rate rises.

According to ASX Market Watch, the index gained 56.90 points or 0.82% to close at 6,955.40. While the index was still trading below the 7,000 water mark, it was a considerable improvement on Monday’s performance, in which the ASX closed down 96.30 points or 1.38% to 6,898.50—a new 50-day low.

The rebound was partly due to the release of the official minutes of the RBA’s March Board meeting, in which the Board members flagged halting hikes in April.

“Members agreed to reconsider the case for a pause at the following meeting, recognising that pausing would allow additional time to reassess the outlook for the economy,” the minutes read.

Energy sector stocks were up by 2%, while financials regained their footing, climbing 1.8%. The top performing shares of the day were coal miner New Hope, which was up 8.98%, and Domino’s Pizza up 5.98%.

The lift on the local index followed gains on international markets reacting positively to news of the UBS take over of Credit Suisse. Despite the gains, the ASX still has some way to climb to reach previous highs: the index is down 4.44% over the last year.

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March 20: Shares on ASX Fall to 50-Day Low

Despite central banks and private lenders rushing to restore faith in the banking sector, the ASX continued to lose ground on Monday, in what could turn out to be the start of a rocky week in equities.

News overnight that UBS has taken the reins of troubled bank Credit Suisse failed to calm the ASX 200, which opened lower on Monday, declining 55 points or 0.8% to 6,940 points at midday.

The deal to secure Credit Suisse follows the collapse of US bank Silicon Valley Bank, and have led to fears in some quarters of a widespread contagion in the global banking sector.

By midday on the ASX, global investment bank Macquarie was trading down -3.1% to $170.29 owing to its international exposure, while insurer Suncorp dropped -3.8% to $11.69.

By close, the ASX had dropped  96.30 points or 1.38% to 6,898.50, which was a new 50-day low. The laggards in the index were Novonix, which lost 9.82% and Liontown Resources, which fell by 8.94%. Over the last five days, the ASX has lost 2.96%, according to ASX Market Overview.

Meanwhile, RBA Assistant Governor Christopher Kent moved to reassure markets of the strength of the local banking sector.

“Volatility in Australian financial markets has picked up but markets are still functioning and, most importantly, Australian banks are unquestionably strong,” Mr Kent said.

“Even if markets remain strained for a time, Australian banks’ issuance [of bonds] will continue to benefit from the strength of their balance sheets.”

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March 16: ASX Down Following Credit Suisse Turmoil

The ASX was rattled today by a fresh banking upset, this time engulfing Credit Suisse, with the Index losing some 1.46% in value to close below 7,000 at 6,965.5 points.

Credit Suisse will reportedly take a $53.7 billion loan from the Swiss central bank to help bolster its liquidity, after its share price plummeted and investors were rattled. European stock markets and Wall Street suffered heavy losses overnight.

The ASX lost value in response to the crisis, with IPH—which revealed it had been the subject of a data breach—and Fletcher Building leading the losses at 10.61% and 7.38% respectively. Over the last five days, the ASX index has lost 4.73%. The only stocks that didn’t finish in the red today were healthcare and industrials.

It is also the first time this year that the index has closed below 7,000 points at 6,965—only slightly higher than the calendar year low of 6,946.2 points on January 3.

It came as robust employment figures all but sealed the deal on another round of rate rises when the RBA meets next month.

Unemployment figures show that the rate has fallen back to 3.5%. RBA Governor, Philip Lowe, has previously indicated that higher unemployment data would be a key metric used to determine whether to pause the current cycle of rate rises.

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March 14: SVB Collapse Rattles ASX

It’s been a tumultuous time on the ASX, with investors reacting nervously to regulators shuttering Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank in the US.

Following the volatility on Wall Street, in which US bank stocks dropped to a two-and-a-half-year low, the ASX spent much of the day in the red, with banking and tech stocks leading the falls.

The ASX 200 Index dropped 99.90 points or 1.41% to close at a 20-day low of 7,008.90. The bottom performing stocks were Lake Resources N.L. and Brainchip Holdings, which were down 8.47% and 8% respectively.

Predictably, IT was the worst performing sector, down 3.5% at the close, while Energy was down 2.9%.

However, it wasn’t all bad news, with miners performing well. Ramelius Resources has risen 6.6%, alongside Silver Lake Resources and Perseus Mining, which are up 6.1% and 5.2% respectively.

It comes amid reports that customers of the collapsed Silicon Valley Bank, as well as the New York-based Signature Bank, are queuing outside branches for answers about their funds, even as authorities rush to reassure depositors that their funds are safe.

In separate news, intellectual property law group, IPH Ltd, has been forced to enter a trading halt after suffering a suspected cyberattack.

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March 3: ASX Stocks Regain Ground

The ASX index closed on a high note on Friday, gaining 28.20 points or 0.39% to 7,283.60 on the back of strong closes in the US and European markets. The Australian dollar rose a little more than .3% to hit 67.46 US cents.

In early trade, BHP was up by 1.1%, Rio Tinto was up 2%, while Liontown and Ramelius Resources climbed 11.46% and 5.84% respectively. Qantas gained 0.8% after it announced that it would hire some 8000 thousands workers in the wake of its $1.43 billion half-year profit. Telecommunications was the best performing sector on the ASX on Friday, gaining .94% overall.

Nevertheless, the ASX has closed down for the fourth Friday in a row, with the index losing .3% of its value since the start of the week.

In the world of crypto, Bitcoin and Ether fared poorly, dropping 5% to $US22,400 and $US1,572 respectively at the time of writing.

Meanwhile, financial markets are betting on a 96% probability the Reserve Bank will raise the cash rate by a quarter of a percentage point at Tuesday’s meeting. This would take the cash rate to 3.6%.

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February 16: ASX Rallies On Back of Jobs Data

The ASX rose on the back of news that unemployment had risen from 3.5% to 3.7%, causing some economists to temper rate hike forecasts amid evidence their effects were being felt in the jobs data.

The ABS today revealed that the number of people employed people fell by 11,500 last month, marking the second month of decline in employment. Economists had predicted that 20,000 jobs would be created in January.

The ASX responded by immediately lifting by .75% across all sectors, with the exception of energy. Origin Energy shares were down around 2.2% on the back of its profits update, while Santos and Yancoal were also trading in the red. By lunch-time the ASX was up 66.7 points, climbing 0.9% to 7418.90.

Telstra led the charge, rising 1.9% to $4.21 after the telco said net profit climbed 25% to $900 million in the December half year. AMP was an outlier: falling a whopping 13.2% to $1.14 after its full-year profits fell well short of market expectations 

The Aussie dollar, meanwhile, fell by half a per cent to 68.7 US cents.

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February 7: ASX Posts Decline After Rates Rise

The S&P/ASX200’s stellar new year run came to a halt today, dropping 40 points, or 0.53%, to 7502 points almost immediately on the back of the RBA’s decision to hike rates for the ninth board meeting in a row.

The Aussie dollar, however, lifted slightly to 69.38 US cents and bond yields rose 9 basis points to 3.24% (three-year return) as the Board confirmed rates would again rise 25 basis points to 3.35% in its first meeting of 2023.

The ASX entered the red shortly after 2.30pm yesterday, with 10 of 11 sectors posting falls. Energy bucked the trend, gaining .43%. Big four banks CBA, Westpac and NAB were down 0.6%, while ANZ dropped 0.1%. ARB traded down 10.49% on the back of a market update, while Centuria fell by 5.2%.

The dip in the ASX ends a strong run for the leading index. As the ASX Market Watch noted, the index has gained 0.30% over the last five days alone and is currently 1.65% off of its 52-week high. In the past month, the ASX was up 5.49%.

However, even before the RBA’s announcement there were signs that investors were becoming skittish.

Australian shares opened trade down 0.1% on Tuesday, largely owing to a slowdown on Wall Street overnight. In the US Morgan Stanley is warning that the positive new year rally on Wall Street is showing signs of faltering as investors brace for a forecast drop in Q4 posted corporate earnings caused by shrinking profits, especially in the tech sector.

In more positive news, Australia recorded a fifth straight year of trade surpluses at $12.24 billion—a trend that is tipped to continue as a result of China’s abandonment of its Covid-zero policy and the gradual softening of relations between the two countries.

Overall exports declined by 1%, the ABS noted, while imports advanced 1% in the month.

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February 2: New 100-day Record for S&P/ASX200 After US Rates Rise

The S&P/ASX200 set a new 100-day high today on the back of a Wall Street rally after the US Federal Reserve raised rates by the smallest amount in almost 12 months.

The Fed raised its benchmark interest rate by .25 percentage points—from 4.5% to 4.75%—while noting that “Inflation has eased somewhat but remains elevated”.

Overnight, Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 rallied to close 1% higher, buoyed by federal chair Jerome Powell’s comments that “the disinflationary process” had started.

In response, the ASX was up today, gaining 12.90 points or 0.17% to 7,514.60 and setting a new 100-day high.

Leading the charge at lunchtime were Megaport Limited—up 9.4%— and Xero Limited, which climbed 7.27% respectively. WiseTech Global Limited was also up 7.08%, while Seek gained 7.06%.

Gold stocks also made strong gains, with Newcrest Mining up 4.6% and Northern Star gaining a solid 5.1%.

Oil prices fell by close to 3% as US fuel supplies rose to the highest levels since June 2021 and the Aussie dollar was up 1.1% at 71.44 US cents.

The ASX index has gained 0.62% over the last five days and is currently 1.45% off of its 52-week high.

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December 15: Better than expected job figures good news for ASX

The ABS has released its latest job figures and brought good news to the economy, showing that Australia’s unemployment rate remains steady at 3.4%.

That’s despite an influx of new jobs–being 64,000 extra positions–to the market, which could affect wage growth across the nation.

But, as economist David Bassanese told the ABC, if wage growth can remain benign, Australia actually faces a good change of holding steady in 2023.

That’s “even if the US economy tumbles into recession”, Bassanese said.

It was news from Wall Street over night that saw the ASX open lower than its previous close, down 0.6% to 7,207 on Thursday, December 15. The sectors with the most losses were materials, consumer cyclical, and technology.

While hopes were high that the US central bank would slow on rate rises, comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated otherwise.

“I wouldn’t see the committee cutting rates until we’re confident that inflation is moving down in a sustained way,” Powell noted in a press statement.

Following Australia’s better than expected job figures, the ASX had risen slightly; however, it was still trading lower than the previous days close.

At 12:30pm, the ASX 200 was down -0.17% to 7,238 points.

December 7: Aussie dollar slumps as bankers voice recession fears

The S&P/ASX200 dropped 61 points or 0.85% to 7,229 on Wednesday, reflecting falls on Wall Street overnight that were prompted by US bankers’ warnings of a looming recession.

The S&P 500’s losing streak extended to four straight days, as Bank of America Corp’s chief executive predicted three quarters of mild negative growth next year, while JPMorgan Chase and Co.’s CEO Jamie Dimon predicted that inflation would impact consumer spending, with a “mild to more pronounced” recession in the wings.

The Wall Street falls prompted the US dollar to strengthen, thereby weakening the Aussie dollar which traded at 66.91 US cents.

According to the ASX, the bottom performing ASX stocks were Beach Energy, down -10.85%, and Paladin Energy down -7.38%. Santos fell 0.7%, while tech stocks dropped 2.6%, echoing losses on the US Nasdaq tech index. The big four banks also closed down, losing more than 1% each.

Coal, however, was an outlier, performing well in the wake of news that China was re-opening. Coronado Global Resources, Champion Iron and Fortescue Metals all posted gains.

Over the last five days, the ASX index has lost -.75% and is down -1.16% over the year.

It came as Australia reported lower-than-expected GDP of 0.6% in the September quarter, and 5.9% in the past year, and the RBA’s decision to raise rates for the eighth straight month to 3.1%. The RBA has warned that more rate rises are to come.

Meanwhile, China’s export growth fell from -0.3 per cent year on year to -8.7%. While some economists pointed to supply chain problems as the culprit, others cited weakening consumer demand.

November 23: Market buoyed by Wall St Rally, Qantas forecasts

The Australian share market rose by 0.62% to 7,226.10 points, with mining and energy stocks leading the way.

In the strongest day on the ASX in almost six months, Qantas shares rallied by 5.1% to $6.17, after the company announced a profit upgrade by $150 million in recent weeks, partly as a result of Australians returning to the skies in large numbers.

Brainchip Holdings and Chalice Mining were up as well—up 7.31% and 6.34% respectively— while Home Consortium rose 0.2%.

The rise came on the back of a Wall Street rally in the aftermath of better-than-expected retail figures out of the US ahead of Black Friday sales.

However, technology stocks continued their poor showing on the ASX, with Smartgroup down -7.4%, WiseTech Global dropping -3.1% and Xero down -1.2%.

Over the last five days, the index has gained 1.46%, and is up 8.21% for the month, but is down 2.94% for the last year to date.

Meanwhile, across the Tasman, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand lifted the cash rate by a record high 0.75 percentage points to 4.25%, while warning that the economy is expected to enter a year-long recession next year.

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November 3: ASX Enters the Red after US Fed’s 75 Point Jump

The Australian sharemarket nosedived on the back of the US Federal Reserve’s decision to issue another sharp rate rise of 75 basis points on Wednesday, in an effort to curb inflation.

The US central bank raised rates by 0.75 percentage points—the sixth hike in total this year and the fourth of this size—taking the benchmark lending rate to 3.75-4%. The US Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell, indicated that the pace of hikes may slow, however, he offered no indication as to when, causing uncertainty on the markets.

“It will take time, however, for the full effects of monetary restraint to be realised, especially on inflation,” Powell said.

“It’s very premature in my view to be thinking about or talking about pausing our rate hike. We have a ways to go.”

With Wall Street tumbling in response to Powell’s comments, the ASX 200 also fell 2% to 6849.6, while the All Ordinaries dropped 1.8% to 7046. All 11 sectors remain in the red. Miners BHP and Rio Tinto slid 2.7% and 2.1%, respectively, while Westpac fell by 2.1%.

In the US, the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 3.4%, the S&P 500 index was down 2.5% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 1.6%.

Wednesday’s latest rate increase stoked concerns that the hikes may plunge the US economy into recession, and comes on the back of a 25 basis points rise by the RBA this week.

Echoing the sentiments of Australia’s central bank, Powell, said they were determined “to stay the course (on rate rises) until the job’s done”.

Related: Will Interest Rates Go Down in 2023?

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October 17: ASX down as inflation fears grip global markets

It was more bad news on the ASX 200, which was down 100 points on Monday, as miners, gold, tech and energy dragged on the benchmark, in the wake of Friday’s slide on Wall Street.

The ASX was down 1.6%, to 6,659 by Monday lunchtime, with mining stocks dropping 2.6% on the back of fears of softer iron ore demand from China, as well as weaker oil prices.

Gold stocks hit their lowest level in almost a month, dropping 3.4%, while Woodside Energy and Santos fell 2.2% and 3.2% respectively.

It was better news for the Australian dollar, which rose slightly to 62.34 US cents.

It wasn’t just miners and energy companies feeling the heat, however. Health insurance giant Medibank fell 3.3% after reporting a cyber incident last week that forced the company to take its network offline. Cement manufacturer Adbri fell an astonishing 19.6% after the CEO stepped down, while Costa Group was 12.5% lower after bad weather resulted in a profit downgrade to its citrus business. Star Entertainment Group went into a trading halt after New South Wales Independent Casino Commission suspended the company’s Sydney casino from Friday.

It followed another poor showing on Wall Street on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 403.89 points, or 1.34%, the S&P 500 losing 86.84 points, or 2.37%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 327.76 points, or slightly more than 3%.

The slide was partly prompted by fears of global inflation and the spectre of rising interest rates.

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Oct 10: ASX opens in the red amid widespread sell-off

The ASX has been hit hard by mounting fears of a US recession, with the Australian dollar dropping to a two-and-half year low of 63.44 US cents on Monday morning.

The dollar has since recovered to a slightly higher 63.5 US cents, although it is hovering near its weakest level since April 2020, which was a month after Australia went into its first national lockdown.

NAB currency strategists predict that the local currency will recover towards 70 US cents by the middle of next year—but not until the US Federal Reserve stops hiking rates.

After a horror session on Wall Street on Friday, the ASX opened down 1.2%. By late afternoon, the ASX benchmark was down 1.4% to 6671 points, with nearly every stock trading lower. The ASX eventually closed at 6668 points.

The sell-off was prompted by a number of factors, including the spectre of further aggressive rate hikes in the US tipping the nation into recession; geopolitical tensions caused by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine; and the impacts of China’s Covid-zero policy.

A few ASX stocks bucked the trend, however, including Fortescue Metals, which was up 2.3%, Sims at 1.5% and BlueScope Steel, which was up 0.8%.

The worst performing stock was Johns Lyng Group, which slumped 14.3% after the group CEO Scott Didier sold off 400,000 of his shares in the company.

Friday’s poor performance on Wall Street was prompted by unemployment figures that revealed the US economy was still performing well, leading to concern the hawkish Federal Reserve will raise rates at the next meeting by 0.75 basis.

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Sep 26: ASX shares tumble amid recession fears

ASX shares have fallen to a three-month low as equity markets around the world continue to tumble and global recession fears loom. 

By midday on Monday, the Australian sharemarket was down 1.4%—to 6480 points with many sectors in the red. The ASX 200 eventually closed down 105 points or 1.6% to 6,469. By 4:15pm AEST, the Australian dollar was down at 64.92 US cents.

Energy and mining stocks were the biggest losers, with Woodside Energy and Santos down 5% and 7.3%, respectively and mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto dropping 5.2% and 5.6%.

The slump comes as global investors brace for more instability, with the ongoing market volatility creating investor distrust and widespread uncertainty.

Last Friday, the British Pound hit an all-time low when Prime Minister Liz Truss announced the largest tax cuts since 1972. 

The announcement came during the UK’s new Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwartend ‘mini budget’, which outlined the tax cuts and spending measures the British government believes will boost long term growth, instead of favouring short-term market moves. 

But with critics concerned that such moves will solely benefit the wealthy, many believe the announcement is what undermined investor confidence in the UK market. 

This withdrawal of confidence saw the pound plunge nearly 5% at one point, down to US$1.0372: the lowest price since Britain went decimal in 1971 and almost at parity with the US dollar. 

It’s far from smooth sailing in the US, either, with the Dow entering treacherous bear market territory.

Just last week US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell raised rates by 0.75% for the third consecutive time in a bid to tackle inflation. 

These rate levels have not been seen since the GFC, yet Powell confirmed further hikes would continue before the year’s end. 

Despite the turbulence–and the many opposing views–Powell remains convinced that a global recession isn’t on the cards since “… there are too many areas of the economy that are performing too well”. 

Australian Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton, is among those in disagreement, warning Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to not take any missteps ahead of next month’s budget. 

“There’s general agreement with the commentators and economists on the US going into recession, and the UK is likely to go into recession to say the least,” Mr Dutton said.

“In my judgement, we won’t have a recession here unless Labor really, really stuffs up,” he said.