Australia’s stock market saw a downturn at the close of trading on Friday, with losses primarily driven by the Gold, Materials, and Metals & Mining sectors.
The S&P/ASX 200 index, a key benchmark for the Australian stock market, ended the session with a decline of 0.56%.
Among the top performers on the S&P/ASX 200 were EML Payments Ltd, which rose by 10.18%, followed by Zip Co Ltd with a gain of 3.21%, and St Barbara Ltd, which saw an increase of 3.03%.
Conversely, Westgold Resources Ltd, Pilbara Minerals Ltd, and Tabcorp Holdings Ltd were among the session’s biggest losers, experiencing declines of 6.80%, 5.88%, and 5.56%, respectively.
According to market data, the number of falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange, with 704 stocks registering losses, 455 recording gains, and 362 ending unchanged.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures implied volatility, rose by 3.11% to 11.60.
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for April delivery saw a slight increase of 0.04% to $2,168.40 a troy ounce. Crude oil prices for April delivery fell by 0.21% to $81.09 a barrel, while the May Brent oil contract declined by 0.23% to $85.22 a barrel.
The currency pair AUD/USD remained unchanged at 0.66, while AUD/JPY fell by 0.16% to 97.44.
The US Dollar Index Futures showed a slight increase of 0.10%, reaching 103.09.
Overall, the market performance reflected a downward trend, with certain sectors experiencing notable declines, particularly in the Gold, Materials, and Metals & Mining sectors.