Australian shares managed to pare losses but still ended down 0.5 percent on Wednesday after a fall in retail sales and a downgrade to Spain's sovereign credit rating shook investors' confidence. The market retreated from the open after gold and copper prices fell offshore. Mid morning, data landed showing retail sales fell 0.2 percent in April, while department store sales fell 1 percent, confirming commentary from top department store Myer that sales had suddenly nose-dived in the past six weeks.
"The retail sales number was a reminder that things are not all rosy in our own backyard," said Tim Waterer, trader at CMC Markets. Department store David Jones dropped 2.2 percent to A$2.25 while Myer fell 0.5 percent and supermarket Woolworths fell 0.7 percent to A$26.19. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index fell 20 points to 4,094.2, according to the latest data. It rose 1.1 percent on Tuesday. New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index rose 0.1 percent to 3,481.3 points. Miners were the main drag, with Newcrest Mining ending down 2.3 percent at A$25.07 after gold prices declined while Rio Tinto lost 1.4 percent to A$57.35.
Comments
Comments are closed.