Australia stock market finished session deep in the red territory on Wednesday, 29 May 2024, on broadbased selloff amid lessening chances of interest rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of Australia after higher-than-expected consumer price inflation data for April.

At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index dropped 101.08 points, or 1.3%, to 7,665.63. The broader All Ordinaries index was down 99.18 points, or 1.23%, to 7,935.68.

All 11 sectors ended lower along with the S&P/ASX 200 Index. Consumer staples sector was bottom performer, down 2.08%, followed by industrials (down 1.87%), financial (down 1.74%), consumer discretionary (down 1.46%), and A-REIT (down 1.25%) sectors.

The best-performing stocks in S&P/ASX200 index were FISHER & PAYKEL Healthcare and ALUMINA, up 3.69% and 3.45% respectively. The bottom performing stocks in S&P/ASX200 index were NEUREN PHARMACEUTICALS and RAMELIUS RESOURCES, down 9.30% and 7.28% respectively.

Among individual stocks, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (up 3.7 per cent) was the strongest performer of the day after predicting its net profit will jump to between NZ$310 million (A$287 million) and NZ$360 million for FY25 after it fell 56% to NZ$132.6 million in the year to March 2024, due to some one-off factors such as falling land values, tax changes and a recall of some Airvo humidifier devices.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia Construction Work Slumps 2.9% In Q1- The value of total construction work done in Australia was down a seasonally adjusted 2.9% on quarter in the first quarter of 2024, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday – coming in at A$64.032 billion. Individually, building work was down 3.7% on quarter, while residential work fell 1.2%, non-residential work dropped 7% and engineering work sank 2.1%. On a yearly basis, overall construction work was up 1.8%.

Australia Inflation Rises 3.6% In April- Australia’s consumer price inflation rose unexpectedly in April driven by food and housing costs, data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed on Wednesday. The consumer price index climbed 3.6% year-on-year, faster than the 3.5% increase in March. Housing, food and non-alcoholic beverages, alcohol and tobacco and transport prices contributed the most to the April inflation. The monthly CPI indicator excluding volatile items and holiday travel remained unchanged at 4.1% in April.

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First Published: May 29 2024 | 10:30 PM IST