ASX retreats on last full day of trade

Losses from big US tech stocks and profit-taking have hit the local sharemarket, with most sectors retreating.

The Santa rally has faded fast in 2024 — how will the year end for Australian stocks? Picture: Max Mason-Hubers

The Australian sharemarket drifted lower in quiet end-of-year trade on Monday, with the property sector leading losses.

At the close of trade the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index had dropped 0.3 per cent, or 26.8 points, to 8235.

The broader All Ordinaries index ended 0.3 per cent lower, shedding 24.1 points, at 8496.

Property stocks were the laggards, down 1.8 per cent as a sector.

“Banks, financials and tech were all weak, but it looked like the machines were running the market today, as they sold,” Bell Potter analyst Richard Coppleson said.

“There was no real buying, so once they got a trend going, it was easy for them to move stocks around,” he said.

Volumes were thin for the penultimate trading day of the year.

And similarly light volumes were likely to exacerbate moves in any direction in coming days, SPI Asset Management partner Stephen Innes said.

“With US (bond) yields climbing and liquidity essentially non-existent, there’s always the potential for outsized moves,” Mr Innes said.

“This comes during a critical phase of year-end rebalancing, intensified by hefty equity positions across portfolios.”

The financials sector dropped half a percentage point, with the big four banks all in the red.

Commonwealth Bank underperformed, falling 0.7 per cent to $155.08, while National Australia Bank gave back 0.5 per cent to $37.40. Westpac softened 0.3 per cent to $32.55 and National Australia Bank edged back 0.2 per cent to $37.40.

Major miners were mixed, as Rio Tinto jumped 0.9 per cent to $117.87, and BHP eked out 0.2 per cent to $39.84. But Fortescue edged down 0.1 per cent to $18.50.

But energy stocks were upbeat, bolstered by the price of crude, with Santos surging 1.7 per cent to $6.66. Woodside jumped 0.9 per cent to $24.47.

Junior explorer and producer Karoon Energy was the session’s best performer, jumping 3.5 per cent to $1.34 commencing drilling at its Who Dat West well off the Gulf of Mexico.

Elsewhere, toll roads operator Atlas Arteria spiked 2.8 per cent to $4.83 and packaging major Orora turned up 2.5 per cent to $2.49.

But Tabcorp fared worst on the benchmark index, sliding 3.5 per cent to 56c. Star Entertaiment dropped 2.6 per cent to 19c.

Meanwhile, biotech PolyNovo gave back 2.8 per cent to $2.09.

The Australian dollar was buying US62.45c at 4.30pm (AEDT).