The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was down 21.20 points or 0.30 percent at 6,974.00, while the broader All Ordinaries index was down 27.10 points or 0.37 percent at 7,225.20.
"The Australian market sagged on Monday as shares retreated further from last week's post-pandemic intraday high," Financial Review reporter Sarah Turner said.
"While the Australian economy has powered out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the pace of the country's vaccine rollout has been less impressive and Prime Minister Scott Morrison has abandoned his goal to get a first vaccine dose to every Australian by October."
In the financial space, the big banks were mostly up with National Australia Bank up (0.41 percent), Westpac Bank up (0.36 percent), ANZ up (0.45 percent) but Commonwealth Bank down (0.47 percent).
Mining stocks dropped with BHP down (1.05 percent), Rio Tinto down (0.54 percent), Fortescue Metals down (1.63 percent), and goldminer Newcrest down (2.47 percent).
The country's oil and gas producers varied with Oil Search down (1.46 percent), Santos up (0.85 percent) and Woodside Petroleum up (0.04 percent).
Australia's largest supermarkets dropped with Coles down (0.57 percent), and Woolworths down (0.46 percent).
Meanwhile, telecommunications giant Telstra was up (1.75 percent), the national carrier Qantas sank (2.39 percent) and biomedical firm CSL rose (0.80 percent).
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