Australia’s stock market witnessed a downturn as losses in the IT, Healthcare, and A-REITs (Australian Real Estate Investment Trusts) sectors dragged shares lower on Friday.
The S&P/ASX 200 closed with a decline of 0.85% at the end of trading in Sydney.
Among the top performers on the S&P/ASX 200 were Bendigo And Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX:BEN), which saw a notable increase of 7.96% or 0.79 points, closing at 10.71 by the end of the session. Following suit, Mesoblast Ltd (ASX:MSB) experienced a gain of 5.37% or 0.06 points, ending at 1.08, while Graincorp Ltd (ASX:GNC) rose by 4.30% or 0.35 points, reaching 8.49 in late trade.
Conversely, the session’s worst performers included Nanosonics Ltd (ASX:NAN), witnessing a decline of 6.31% or 0.19 points, settling at 2.82 by the close. Xero Ltd (ASX:XRO) followed suit with a decrease of 5.02% or 6.40 points, closing at 121.14, while Reece Ltd (ASX:REH) dropped by 4.61% or 1.26 points, concluding at 26.07.
Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange, with 688 stocks facing declines, 477 recording gains, and 446 ending unchanged.
Bendigo And Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX:BEN) saw its shares hitting 52-week highs, climbing by 7.96%.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, indicating the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, rose by 2.28% to 11.43.
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for June delivery experienced a slight increase of 0.16% or 3.70, trading at $2,389.20 a troy ounce. Meanwhile, Crude oil for delivery in June rose by 0.45% or 0.36, reaching $79.59 a barrel, and the July Brent oil contract saw a rise of 0.64% or 0.53, trading at $83.80 a barrel.
The AUD/USD pair remained relatively unchanged, rising by 0.06% to 0.67, while the AUD/JPY pair saw an increase of 0.14% to 103.91.
The US Dollar Index Futures rose by 0.11% to 104.46.