Australian shares fall as oil prices surge on Middle East tensions

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 23 Oct, 03:02 · Archive

Australian shares declined as rising oil prices and concerns about artificial intelligence spending weighed on mining and tech stocks.

Australian shares fell 0.27 per cent by midday as the S&P/ASX200 dropped 23.5 points to 8769.7, ending a three-week winning streak. The broader All Ordinaries fell 0.41 per cent. The falls followed heavy selling in United States tech stocks and ongoing attacks on Middle East energy infrastructure that sent crude prices to five-month highs.

Mining and technology stocks bore the brunt of the selling. Raw materials and energy stocks fell more than two per cent, whilst information technology shares dropped 1.7 per cent. BHP shares fell to six-month lows of $55.37 following a steep fall in copper, whilst gold dipped to its lowest price since August at $US4024 an ounce. Fortescue's stalemate with China's state-backed ore buyer continued to drag on iron ore futures, which hovered just above $US90 a tonne.

Moomoo chief market analyst Tapas Strickland said investors were shifting into safer sectors such as healthcare, insurers and consumer staples as global tensions mounted and the massive costs of building artificial intelligence deterred investment in riskier shares. All big four banks traded higher, propelling the financials sector towards a second week of gains.

How it is being reported

• Australian shares tumble as oil hits five-month highMining stocks continue to haemorrhage value as surging oil prices and doubts about the artificial intelligence build-out hamper market confidence.Perth Now · 23 Oct, 02:34
• Australian shares tumble as oil hits five-month highMining stocks continue to haemorrhage value as surging oil prices and doubts about the artificial intelligence build-out hamper market confidence.The West Australian · 23 Oct, 02:34

In this story: Australian Securities Exchange · BHP · Fortescue · China · Middle East

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem