The laggards

Worley (down 1.3 per cent), TPG Telecom (down 1.1 per cent) and index heavyweight Fortescue (down 1.1 per cent) were among the weakest performers, with the latter dragged down by a fall in the iron ore price which hit a seven-month low at the weekend.

Real estate investment trusts dipped 1.9 per cent to be the weakest market sector. Goodman Group slid 1.8 per cent and Scentre Group shed 1.8 per cent. Energy companies (down 0.4 per cent) were also among the worst-performers, with Whitehaven Coal (down 1.1 per cent) and Woodside (down 1 per cent) both falling.

The lowdown

The Australian sharemarket was subdued ahead of the Reserve Bank’s interest rate decision, which will be announced on Tuesday.

The rate-sensitive REITs sector led losses on the local bourse amid increasing expectations for rates to stay higher for longer, with markets expecting the central bank to hold rates steady at 4.35 per cent.

Iron ore heavyweights BHP and Fortescue also failed to lift the index amid the dip in iron ore price.

On Wall Street on Friday, the US sharemarket continued to slide, extending its retreat from record highs.

The S&P 500 Index lost 0.6 per cent, its third straight loss. The benchmark hit a record high on Tuesday, but has mostly marked time since then.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average also lost 0.5 per cent, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index ended 1 per cent lower.

Losses in tech stocks weighed on the market. Google parent Alphabet fell 1.3 per cent, and software maker Adobe slumped 13.7 per cent after providing investors with a weak revenue forecast. Microsoft and Broadcom both dipped 2.1 per cent.

The latest pullback came as traders reviewed several reports showing that US inflation, though broadly cooling, remained stubbornly high.

A closely watched report from the University of Michigan showed consumer sentiment unexpectedly fell in March. Consumers were less optimistic about the economy but continued to expect inflation to fall, a potential sign that consumer prices will come under control.

Above-forecast inflation remains the major concern for Wall Street, as this is a key indicator for when interest rates may begin to fall, which would be highly supportive for equities.

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In the latest report, inflation ticked up to 3.2 per cent in February, from 3.1 per cent in January, more than Wall Street expected.

Fed officials will give their latest forecasts for where they see interest rates heading this year on Wednesday, following their latest policy meeting.

Traders are still leaning towards a rate cut in June, data from CME Group says.

The US central bank has held its benchmark rate steady since July 2023, and has previously signalled it expects three rate cuts in 2024. Market expectations are now growing that there may be just two.

Bond yields edged higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped to 4.31 per cent, from 4.29 per cent. The yield on the two-year Treasury rose to 4.73 per cent, from 4.69 per cent.

Tweet of the day

Quote of the day

“I lost my passion for work, I lost my [registered taxi licence] plates worth half a million dollars each, and I lost my income that provided food on the table,” said taxi business owner Nicos Andrianakis, who stood on the steps of the Supreme Court of Victoria on Monday morning following a historic settlement of $272 million – the fifth-largest class action settlement in Australia’s history.

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With AP

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