Mining giant BHP has extended its record-breaking run, while Coles shares have buckled under the weight of a landmark court decision as the local bourse heads towards a fifth straight day of losses.
The S&P/ASX200 fell 23.3 points by midday on Thursday, to be down 0.27 per cent to 8,607.1, as the broader All Ordinaries gained 27.4 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 8,855.8.
BHP shares have surged almost seven per cent in three days, breaking its record high in each session to trade at $62.31, bolstered by base metal price strength after data this week indicated a rebound in China’s economy.
Rio Tinto and Fortescue also advanced but the rest of the segment faltered, with gold miners, battery minerals and rare earths producers losing ground.
Eight of 11 local sectors were trading lower by lunchtime, with consumer staples under pressure as Coles dropped 3.6 per cent after the Federal Court ruled the supermarket giant’s ”Down Down” discount campaign had misled shoppers.
Woolworths shares dropped 1.7 per cent, with the court to rule on its “Prices Down” campaign at a later date.
Energy stocks were also heavy, with the sector shedding 1.1 per cent after oil prices fell overnight on fears of potential US interest rate hikes and ahead of a meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
The heavyweight financials sector eked a less than 0.2 per cent gain, as Commonwealth Bank shares bounced modestly after tumbling more than 10 per cent on Wednesday, which wiped almost $30 billion from its value to leave it with a combined market cap of $257 billion.
NAB shares have underperformed their big four counterparts, slipping 1.9 per cent to $36.18.
IT stocks tumbled as accounting software-maker Xero dropped almost nine per cent, after a US expansion ate into its full-year post-tax net profit, which fell by more than a quarter to $167.4 million on the previous year.
WiseTech also weighed on the segment, plunging more than four per cent as concerns around artificial intelligence disruption and trade uncertainty continued to weigh on the logistics platform’s prospects.
Megaport shares rocketed higher by more than a third after securing three major GPU, CPU, network, and storage contracts with two customers worth a combined $US$182.9 million ($A254 million).
In company news, Euronext Paris CEO Anthony Attia will become the next managing director and chief executive of bourse operator ASX Ltd, replacing Helen Lofthouse. Its share price gained 1.7 per cent.
The Australian dollar was buying 72.45 US cents, up slightly from 72.36 US cents on Wednesday at 5pm.
The currency is being supported by stronger commodity prices, improved risk sentiment and expectations of further Reserve Bank interest rate hikes, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.