Australia Market falls on Omicron woes

The Australian share market finished session lower on Monday, 10 January 2022, on concerns over economic impact of spread of the Omicron Covid-19 variant after total Covid-19 cases in the country surpassed 1 million, with more than half of them recorded in the past week.

At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 was down 6.28 points, or 0.08%, to 7,447.07. The broader All Ordinaries index fell 8.32 points, or 0.11%, to 7,766.07.

The top performing stocks in this index were NOVONIX and AGL ENERGY, up 5.88% and 5.84% respectively. The bottom performing stocks in this index were RELIANCE WORLDWIDE CORPORATION and LIFESTYLE COMMUNITIES, down 3.37% and 3.36% respectively.

Technology stocks fell on tracking a drop on the tech-focused Nasdaq on Friday. Afterpay retreated 2.3%, while Xero and Wisetech Global fell 2.8% and 2.7%, respectively.

Energy stocks advanced, as oil prices remained in an upward momentum, with political instability in Kazakhstan leading to concerns over oil supply. Woodside Petroleum rose 2.3%, while Santos was up 0.7%.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia Building Approvals Climb 3.6% On Month In November- Australia total number of building approvals climbed a seasonally adjusted 3.6% on month in November, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Monday, coming in at 16,448, following the 12.9% drop in October. Permits for private sector houses rose 1.4% on month to 10,892, while permits for private sector dwellings excluding houses jumped 9.7% to 5,315. On a yearly basis, permits for total dwellings sank 7.7%, permits for private sector houses dropped 8.1% and permits for private sector dwellings excluding houses fell 5.5%.

CURRENCY NEWS: The dollar index traded up 0.26% at 95.968 against a basket of its peers. The Australian dollar traded up 0.14% at $0.7188.

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