Selling hit the market from the outset, with sentiment soured by a Wall Street downturn Friday after the U.S. Federal Reserve, in its congressional report, cited the fallout from the spreading coronavirus outbreak chiefly in China as a possible economic risk. Toward noon, stocks cut losses thanks to buybacks induced by Chinese shares' resilience. But trading turned lackluster in the afternoon due to a dearth of fresh incentives.
Shares in the building materials firm Boral tumbled 10.7% after the company announced its chief executive Mike Cain will step down after the release of the company's full year results.
Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp
BHP Billiton weakened 1% on the back of falling commodity prices and uncertainty over the outlook for Chinese demand.
Oil prices fell to a 13 month low after Russia said it will need more time to decide if OPEC and allied producers should cut production in response to the slowing activity associated with the coronavirus. OPEC+, as the group is referred to, is suggesting a production cut of a further ~600k barrels per day, bringing the total supply cuts to approximately 2.7% of global supply. Oilsearch (OSH) shares ended at $6.36, down 4 cents or 0.6%.
CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6695 after touching an earlier low of $0.6656.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content