Australian shares fell back on Monday after a poor earnings result from Westpac weighed on banking stocks, offsetting gains in Telstra and resources stocks.

The market almost rebounded from heavy early losses to record a gain for the day but ultimately the benchmark S&P/ASX200 dropped 0.2 per cent to 5243.0 while the broader All Ordinaries dropped 0.1 per cent to 5312.0.