Australian shares edged lower on Monday, hurt by a decline in technology stocks following a slump in software maker WiseTech, while softer underlying prices pushed commodity stocks lower.
The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.2% to 8,279.5 points by 0031 GMT.
The benchmark ended 0.3% lower on Friday. Logistics software maker WiseTech Global plunged 22% after four of its non-executive directors decided to step aside owing to differing views around the ongoing role of the company’s billionaire founder and former CEO Richard White.
WiseTech was the worst performer on the benchmark index and the technology sub-index, which plunged 8% in its biggest one-day percentage drop since mid-June 2022.
Shares of tech company Iress, which provides software to financial services industry, dropped 17% after its full-year profit forecast fell short of estimates.
Australian shares post worst week in 2-1/2 years
ASX-listed shares of Block also dropped 10.6% after reporting lower-than-expected fourth-quarter profit.
Mining stocks fell 1.6%, dragged by a 0.7% decline in iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange.
Iron ore miner Rio Tinto lost 1.7%, while BHP Group shed 1.6%.
Energy stocks shed 1.5% after oil prices settled down more than $2 a barrel on Friday and posted a weekly decline.
Woodside Energy and Santos fell 0.9% and 3.3%, respectively.
Gold stocks fell 2.2% after bullion eased from its record high. Limiting the losses, financial stocks and discretionary consumer stocks rose 0.8% each.
On Friday, the US Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.69%, the S&P 500 lost 104.39 points, while Nasdaq lost 2.20% amid mounting concerns over new tariff threats and softening consumer demand.
Japan’s Nikkei was last up 0.26% at 38,776.94 points.
New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 1.9% to 12,510.55 points.
Investors now await crucial inflation print from Australia due on Wednesday, for more clues on the Reserve Bank of Australia’s monetary policy stance.
