Australian shares on Friday fell on the quarter's last day, pulled down by mining and energy stocks, as investors awaited the Saturday meeting in Japan between the US and China presidents. A mix of reports about the possible outcome of the Donald Trump-Xi Jinping meeting in Osaka on Saturday tempered overall market sentiment and brewed further uncertainty.
The S&P/ASX 200 index slid 0.7% to 6,618.80 at the close of trade. For the quarter, however, the main index was 7.1% higher. Rio Tinto shares dropped 2.4% on the day, while BHP Group finished 1.9% lower, despite Dalian iron ore prices surging to a record on concerns over tightening supply. The financial sub-index erased earlier gains to end marginally lower. Three of the "Big Four" banks lost in the 0.1%-0.6% range. Only Westpac, up 0.8%, gained. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index finished 0.7% higher at 10,501.10 on the day and up 6.7% in the April-June quarter.
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