Mar 04, 2022 02:45AM ET
By: AnalysisWatch
Australian shares traded lower after the close on Friday as losses in the IT, consumer cyclical, and energy sectors led stocks to lower.
At the close of trading in Sydney, the S & P/ASX 200 was down 0.57%.
The best performer on the S&P/ASX 200 was Perseus Mining Ltd., which rose 3.12% or 0.06 points to close at 1.82.Newcrest Mining Ltd. gained 2.76%, or 0.70 points, to close at 26.02, and Gold Road Resources Ltd. rose 2.58%, or 0.04 points, to 1.59 in late trading.
Polynovo Ltd. was the worst performer, falling 8.60% or 0.10 points to close at 1.01.
Pointsbet Holdings Ltd fell 8.28% or 0.36 points to 3.99, while Zip Co Ltd fell 8.02% or 0.15 points to 1.72.
On the Sydney Stock Exchange, falling shares outweighed rising ones by 985 to 466, and 350 ended unchanged.
Shares of Zip Co Ltd fell to a 52-week low, losing 8.02%, or 0.15 to 1.72.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, increased 4.41% to 17.06.
Gold futures for April delivery rose 0.27%, or 5.25, to $1,941.15 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodity trading, crude oil for April delivery rose 1.65%, or 1.78, to $109.45 a barrel, while the May contract for Brent oil rose 1.24%, or 1.37, to $111.83 a barrel.
The AUD/USD rate was unchanged at 0.74, while the AUD/JPY rate rose 0.31% to 84.88.
Futures on the US dollar index increased 0.28% to 98.06.