Australia news LIVE: PM in Queensland as cyclone looms; National accounts reveal economy has emerged from per capita recession
The Australian sharemarket widened its losses during lunchtime trading on Wednesday after the escalating trade war between the US and its key trading partners triggered another sell-off on Wall Street overnight.
The S&P/ASX 200 tumbled 102.10 points, or 1.25 per cent, to 8096 as of 12.31pm AEDT. All the market’s 11 industry sectors declined, led by consumer related and banking and insurance stocks. The losses come after the local market lost 0.6 per cent on Tuesday.
Wall Street fell across the board as investors digested the reality of Trump’s trade war..Credit: Bloomberg
The Australian dollar was 0.3 per cent weaker at US62.56 cents.
The market slump extended further after data showed Australia’s economy accelerated in the final three months of last year, supporting the Reserve Bank’s cautious approach to further interest rate cuts. Gross domestic product advanced 0.6 per cent, in line with economists’ estimate and double the pace recorded in the third quarter, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said. On a per capita basis, GDP rose 0.1 per cent following seven consecutive quarters of falls.
Consumer staples suffered the biggest falls, dragged down by supermarket giants Woolworths (down 3.2 per cent) and Coles (down 3.4 per cent). Penfolds maker Treasury Wine Estates (down 4.3 per cent), bottle shop owner Endeavour Group (down 2 per cent) and dairy producer A2 Milk (down 1.8 per cent) also declined.
Read the full market wrap here.
