A double-dose of underwhelming economic data knocked the wind out of investors’ sails on Thursday to hand the Australian sharemarket its worst session of the volatile week so far.
The benchmark ASX 200 closed 42 points, or 0.7 per cent, lower at 6010.9 with losses spread across the board. The big four banks and global iron ore players finished lower, while plasma giant CSL took a 2.1 per cent hit.
The ASX 200 hasn't recorded consecutive sessions in the black for almost a fortnight. Credit:Daniel Munoz
An already shaky session turned sour after news the nation’s unemployment rate hit a 22-year high of 7.4 per cent in June, with coronavirus lockdowns helping to push nearly one million Australians out of a job.
Chinese data also appeared to take a toll on the local index, as well as the wider Asian region.
China’s second quarter GDP figures may have surprised to the upside with a 3.2 per cent rise, but its retail sales for June slumped worse than expected to hint at possible problems ahead as lockdowns relax across the globe and businesses reopen.
Eagle Asset Management chief investment officer Sean Sequeira said investors were now turning their attention to the upcoming earnings season, and whether companies will be game enough to detail their forecasts.
“The most important part is not what has happened, but what companies think will happen,” Mr Sequeira said.
“Markets have already come to believe that support for the government won’t fall off a cliff come September. So people will be looking for, at least, a general indication (from companies) on what’s ahead.”
Thursday’s decline for the ASX 200 meant the local bourse again failed to record consecutive sessions in the black. The last time it did so was almost a fortnight ago.
A positive Wall Street lead was quickly discarded at Thursday’s open and the losses only steepened into the afternoon.
The materials sector lost 0.5 per cent for the day, with Rio Tinto down 1.4 per cent at $103.51 and BHP losing 0.6 per cent to $37.76. Fortescue Metals pulled the other way with a 0.5 per cent rise to $16.11.
Twiggy Forrest’s miner touched a new intraday record of $16.24, elevating his stake in the company to just over $18 billion.
The financials dropped 0.7 per cent with Westpac leading the losses for the big banks, down 1 per cent to $17.81. Macquarie was an exception, adding 0.8 per cent to $124.75.
Property stocks shed a collective 1.4 per cent, including a 1.6 per cent decline for Goodman Group to $15.53, and a 1.8 per cent fall for Dexus to $9.24.
Industrials finished 0.3 per cent ahead as Qantas, Brambles, Austal, Cimic, and Aurizon gained ground. Toll giant Transurban finished flat.
TPG rose 2.3 per cent to $8.45 to lift the telco sector, even as Telstra slipped 0.3 per cent to $3.46.