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The Australian share market has tumbled with iron ore miner Fortescue copping a beating, as investors brace for the latest local inflation data, a slew of Big Tech earnings reports out of the US and the Federal Reserve’s upcoming decision on interest rates.
ASX 200 was 0.8 per cent weaker at 7,926 points at 12:30pm, with miners, banks and the tech sector all tracking lower. Fortescue was down 9 per cent to $18.54, after news emerged that an institutional investor had sought to sell a $1.86 billion stake in the iron ore miner, at $18.55 per share.
Meanwhile, BHP fell 1.4 per cent and Rio Tinto slumped 1.2 per cent.
Wall Street posted a mixed session as US investors brace for a slew of Big Tech earnings reports and the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates. Credit: Bloomberg
The Big Four banks were also in the red, with ANZ down 1 per cent, NAB down 0.4 per cent, CBA slipping 0.2 per cent and Westpac sliding 0.7 per cent. Among the local technology heavyweights, WiseTech Global dropped 2.4 per cent and Xero slumped 0.7 per cent.
Overnight, US markets endured a mixed session with the S&P 500 (up 0.1 per cent at 5463.5 points) and Nasdaq (up 0.1 per cent at 17370.2 points) in positive territory. However, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.1 per cent to end the session at 40539.9 points.
US investors will be keeping a close eye on the latest numbers from a number of technology heavyweights, with Microsoft, Facebook and Instagram’s owner Meta, Apple and Amazon to report their earnings.
Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve will this week provide its latest steer on where interest rates in the US are headed. The reserve bank is expected to keep rates steady, but investors will be keen to hear from US fed chief Jerome Powell on how the US central bank is balancing the risks of cutting rates too soon and keeping them on hold for too long.
Rate decisions in Japan and the UK will also be closely watched — the former for a hike, the latter for a cut.
“The Fed and tech earnings will have the spotlight for the week,” said Paul Nolte at Murphy & Sylvest Wealth Management. “The future direction of interest rates should be clearer after the press conference. Big tech can answer whether investors’ expectations for still high growth rates is warranted.”