The Australian stock market saw a slight downturn at the conclusion of trading on Monday, with losses in the Consumer Staples, Industrials, and Utilities sectors contributing to the overall decline.
At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 index fell by 0.03%.
Among the top performers on the S&P/ASX 200 during the session were Austal Ltd (ASX: ASB), which recorded a 7.20% increase or 0.13 points, closing at 1.86. Additionally, Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH) saw a gain of 6.18%, adding 0.06 points to finish at 0.94, while Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) experienced a 2.96% rise, accumulating 0.11 points to reach 3.83 by the end of the trading session.
Conversely, the worst performers included Omni Bridgeway Ltd (ASX: OBL), registering a decline of 4.40% or 0.06 points, closing at 1.30. Abacus Property Group (ASX: ABG) saw a decrease of 3.73%, losing 0.05 points to end at 1.16, and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) declined by 2.44%, down 0.01 points to 0.20.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange, with 16 stocks advancing, 9 declining, and 31 remaining unchanged.
Shares in Omni Bridgeway Ltd (ASX: OBL) fell to 5-year lows, losing 4.40% or 0.06 to 1.30.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, was down 2.74% to 9.80.
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for February delivery experienced a 0.64% increase, amounting to 13.20, reaching $2,064.50 a troy ounce. Elsewhere, Crude oil for delivery in February fell by 0.54%, reaching $73.49 a barrel, while the March Brent oil contract fell by 0.26%, hitting $78.80 a barrel.
In the currency market, AUD/USD remained unchanged at 0.68, while AUD/JPY fell by 0.24% to 96.71.
The US Dollar Index Futures showed a decline of 0.12%, closing at 101.36.