Australian Market Extends Early Losses In Mid-market

(RTTNews) - The Australian market is extending its early losses in mid-market moves on Thursday, reversing some of the gains in the previous two sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling a tad below the 8,600 level, with losses across most sectors led by mining and technology stocks. Energy stocks are the only bright spot.

Spiking crude oil prices have fueled inflation concerns and raised expectations of a rate hike by the Reserve Bank of Australia as early as next week, with officials warning that higher energy costs could push inflation above its target band.

Markets are now pricing in about a 75 percent chance of a rate hike next week, up from less than 30 percent earlier this week.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 144.20 points or 1.65 percent to 8,599.30, after hitting a low of 8,598.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 152.80 points or 1.70 percent to 8,824.00. Australian stocks ended notably higher on Wednesday.

Among major miners, Rio Tinto and Mineral Resources are down more than 1 percent each, while Fortescue is declining more than 2 percent and BHP Group is losing almost 2 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Santos and Woodside Energy are adding more than 1 percent each, while Beach energy is gaining almost 3 percent. Origin Energy is flat.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is declining almost 4 percent, Xero is sliding almost 6 percent and Appen is slipping more than 4 percent, while WiseTech Global and Zip are tumbling more than 5 percent each.

Among the big four banks, Westpac and Commonwealth Bank are losing more than 1 percent each, while ANZ Banking is down more than 2 percent and National Australia Bank is declining almost 2 percent.

Among gold miners, Resolute Mining is declining more than 3 percent and Newmont is slipping more than 2 percent, while Genesis Minerals, Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources are losing more than 1 percent each.

In economic news, Australia's consumer inflation expectations rose to 5.2 percent in March 2026 from 5.0 percent in the February 2026, marking the highest level since July 2023, ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy meeting on March 17.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.713 on Thursday.