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Miners, healthcare weigh on Aussie share market

Xinhua News,SYDNEY
2020-10-16 08:28

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SYDNEY, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Australian share market opened lower on Friday, with healthcare and materials offsetting gains in the consumer and financial sectors.

At 10:30 (AEST), the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was down 7.10 points or 0.11 percent at 6,203.20, while the broader All Ordinaries index was down 4.30 points or 0.067 percent at 6,409.90.

After rallying the day before following suggestions of a further interest rate cut, the Aussie share market opened marginally lower to finish the week, as the country's mining and healthcare sectors weighed.

Iron ore giants, BHP and RIO Tinto were both firmly lower, on the back of a slump in the commodity price, with the latter also set to face further consequences over the destruction of an ancient Aboriginal site earlier in the year.

"Iron ore fell by 85 U.S. cents or 0.7 percent -- the fourth successive day of losses -- to 118.90 U.S. dollars a tonne as global supply swells," Commsec Market Analyst Ryan Felsman said.

Meanwhile consumer stocks jumped and financials posted a healthy lift, as did energy and utilities.

In the financial space, the big banks lifted with Commonwealth Bank up 0.10 percent, Westpac Bank up 0.27 percent and National Australia Bank up 0.49 percent and ANZ up 0.23 percent.

Mining stocks were mixed with BHP down 0.98 percent, Rio Tinto down 0.67 percent, Fortescue Metals up 0.12 percent and goldminer Newcrest up 0.54 percent.

The country's oil and gas producers also varied with Oil Search unchanged, Santos up 0.10 percent and Woodside Petroleum up 0.59 percent.

Australia's largest supermarkets varied with Coles up 0.06 percent, and Woolworths down 0.08 percent.

Meanwhile telecommunications giant Telstra was unchanged, the national carrier Qantas took off 1.41 percent and biomedical firm CSL slumped 1.57 percent.
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