Australia Stocks Trade Notably Lower

Australian equities fell 81 points or 0.9% to 8,648 in Tuesday morning trade, marking a second straight drop as renewed uncertainty over U.S.–Iran peace talks triggered a sharp drop in U.S. futures. Sentiment was further weighed by caution ahead of key domestic releases, including April building permits and Q1 business inventories and gross profits later today, followed by GDP and trade data in coming days. In top trading partner China, manufacturing growth slowed in May, according to a private survey, while official data pointed to stagnation, underscoring persistent headwinds from the Middle East conflict. Sector performance was broadly negative, with process industries, logistics, retail trade, and financials among major laggards. The big four banks slipped between 1.7% and 1.9%, while notable decliners included Scentre Group (-5.3%), GPT Group (-3.5%), Qantas Airways (-2.4%), and Medibank Private (-1.8%).

The ASX 200 was little changed on Monday, the first trading day of June, closing at 8,729 after the prior session’s rally. Gains in tech services, healthcare, and commercial services offset declines in process industries and consumer services. Traders braced for a busy week of domestic releases, including Q1 business inventories, company gross profits, and GDP. April trade data will also be due after March exports fell, but imports surged. In the meantime, fresh figures showed job ads rose in May for the first time in three months, while the monthly inflation gauge slipped 0.3% mom, its first decline since February. In the U.S, stock futures edged higher after President Donald Trump said Tehran “really wants to make a deal” that would benefit the U.S. and its allies. Two of the big four banks posted modest gains, alongside heavyweight BHP Group (0.3%) and Rio Tinto (1.7%). On the downside, Lynas Rare Earths slipped 2.6%, CSL Ltd. fell 2.3%, and Bluescope Steel lost 1.1%.

Australian stocks fell 23 points, or 0.3%, to 8,707 in early trade on the first day of June, reversing the prior session’s rally as caution set in ahead of key domestic releases later this week, including April trade data as well as Q1 current account and GDP. The economy is expected to slow on a quarterly basis amid global headwinds from the Middle East conflict. Still, losses were cushioned by Friday’s U.S. gains on renewed hopes for progress toward a peaceful resolution to the Iran war. Sector declines were led by consumer non-durables, communications, healthcare, and retail trade, while strength in commercial services and non-energy minerals helped cap the fall. Notable laggards included QBE Insurance (-2.0%), Woolworths Group (-1.8%), and Santos Ltd. (-1.2%). Traders await May job ads due later today, alongside China’s private manufacturing PMI, a key gauge from Australia’s top trading partner.