Close Australian shares ended lower in quiet trade today, hit by a drop in the banks on worries about funding costs and retailers on jitters about tepid Christmas spending.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index was down 26.9 points, or 0.6 per cent, at 4699.9, while the broader All Ordinaries Index fell 24.3 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 4808.5.
Among the sectors, consumer staples fell 0.8 per cent, financials shed 0.6 per cent and materials dropped 0.4 per cent.
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Traders said investors look to be squaring positions ahead of Christmas slightly earlier than normal, with no positive news to turn the market around.
"People are still looking for reasons to sell the market and have been for some time," said Martin Angel, a dealer at Patersons Securities.
Retailers came under fire on growing worries that Christmas shoppers may spend like Scrooge, not Santa this year.
Woolworths fell 1.1 per cent to $26.41 and department store chain Myer dropped 1.7 per cent to $3.44, the lowest close in four months for both stocks.
CommSec market analyst Juliette Saly said the local market held fairly steady in morning trade but financial stocks were sold off in the afternoon after Wayne Swan indicated that the sector would be reformed within one week.
ANZ sees margin pressures
ANZ was down 34 cents, or 1.5 per cent, at $23.15, after warning that lending margins would remain under pressure for at least another 18 months as it refinances cheap debt raised before the global financial crisis.
Westpac was down 18 cents at $21.76, National Australia Bank shed 34 cents, or 1.42 per cent, to $23.62 and Commonwealth Bank backtracked 16 cents to $49.60.
‘‘Rio Tinto is managing to hold its head above water but only just, due to stronger trade in London on the metals exchange overnight,’’ Ms Saly said.
Rio Tinto was up 17 cents at $87.51 but BHP Billiton gave up 22 cents to $44.86.
Energy stocks were also weaker after the oil price eased from two-year highs overnight.
Woodside was 17 cents lower at $42.73, Santos retreated 18 cents, or 1.4 per cent, to $12.47 and Caltex, which has recently been outperforming the market, gave up 36 cents, or 2.5 per cent, to $14.14.
Focus on media
The media sector was in focus following reports that iron ore heiress, Hancock Prospecting’s Gina Rinehart, had snapped up a 2 per cent stake in Fairfax. Fairfax eased 2.5 cents, or 1.7 per cent, to $1.42.
Consolidated Media was flat at $3.20, News Corp put on 7 cents to $16.38 and its non-voting scrip inched 1 cent lower to $14.48.
Qantas also came under the spotlight as it appeared in Sydney’s Federal Court against Rolls-Royce, the maker of engines for its A380 fleet. Qantas dipped 5 cents, or 1.9 per cent, to $2.64.
In other company news, Aston Resources said it had inked a deal to sell a 15 per cent stake in its flagship Maules Creek coal project in New South Wales to Japan’s Itochu for $345 million. Shares in Aston were up 42 cents, or 5.26 per cent, at $8.41.
Gold miner Newcrest was 15 cents weaker at $41.35.
ING Industrial Fund was the most traded stock by volume, with 63.01 million shares changing hands worth $32.6 million. ING Industrial Fund shares were unchanged at 51.5 cents.
Preliminary market turnover was 2.48 billion shares traded for $5.2 billion, with 505 stocks up, 629 down and 368 unchanged.
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AAP, Reuters, with BusinessDay