Australian Market Modestly Lower

(RTTNews) - Wiping off the slight gains in the previous session, the Australian stock market is modestly lower on Tuesday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying above the 7,600 level, with weakness across most sectors led by technology and mining stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 11.10 points or 0.15 percent to 7,641.70, after hitting a low of 7,610.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 12.30 points or 0.16 percent to 7,895.80. Australian stocks closed slightly higher on Monday.

Among the major miners, Fortescue Metals is losing almost 2 percent, Rio Tinto is down more than 1 percent, BHP Group is declining almost 1 percent and Mineral Resources is edging down 0.3 percent.

Oil stocks are mixed. Santos is edging up 0.1 percent and Woodside Energy is adding almost 1 percent, while Origin Energy and Beach energy are losing more than 1 percent each.

Among tech stocks, Zip is plunging more than 12 percent, Afterpay owner Block is sliding more than 5 percent and Xero is edging down 0.1 percent, while WiseTech Global is gaining more than 1 percent and Appen is surging more than 8 percent.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Evolution Mining is losing almost 2 percent, Northern Star resources is down almost 3 percent, Resolute Mining is sliding almost 4 percent, Gold Road Resources is slipping more than 1 percent and Newmont is declining more than 3 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank and ANZ Banking are edging up 0.1 to 0.3 percent each, while Westpac is edging down 0.2 percent.

In other news, shares in Alumina are slipping more than 7 percent after takeover target swung to a net loss for the full year and withheld a final dividend.

Shares in Reece Group are jumping more than 12 percent after reporting a strong profit for the first half and declaring an interim dividend.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.653 on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, stocks ended on a negative note on Monday, and the major averages turned weak after a slightly positive start, as investors largely stayed cautious ahead of some key economic data, including a report on consumption expenditure.

Among the major averages, the Dow ended lower by 62.30 points or 0.16 percent at 39,069.23. The S&P 500 settled with a loss of 19.27 points or 0.38 percent at 5,069.53. The Nasdaq, which spent much of the day's session in positive territory despite a choppy ride, ended down 20.57 points or 0.13 percent at 15,976.25.

The major European markets also saw weakness on the day. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 drifted down 0.29 percent, and France's CAC 40 settled lower by 0.46 percent, while Germany's DAX edged up 0.02 percent.

Crude oil prices pared early losses and climbed higher on Monday as continued attacks by Houthi militants in the Red Sea route raised concerns about supply. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended higher by $1.09 or 1.4 percent at $77.58 a barrel.