Australian shares fell 0.70 percent on Wednesday, hit by lower commodities prices and disappointing Japanese growth figures, dealers said. The SP/ASX200 index dropped 32.7 points to 4,637.9, while the broader All Ordinaries shed 33.8 points, or 0.72 percent, to 4,652.6. Mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto both suffered, dropping 1.22 percent to 40.55 dollars and 1.39 percent to 70.90 respectively.
The big banks were mainly down with ANZ losing 1.92 percent to 21.51, Commonwealth 0.43 percent lower at 52.86 and Westpac off 1.09 percent at 23.59. NAB rose 0.25 percent to 27.96. Qantas plummeted 3.73 percent to 2.58, supermarket chain Woolworths was down 1.71 percent at 26.96 and media giant News Corp rose 0.12 percent to 16.16.