Banks and mining companies send Australian shares lower ahead of the release of RBA meeting minutes – 19 September 2023 at 02:48

Australian shares fell on Tuesday, led by losses in shares of major financial and mining companies, before the release of the minutes of the central bank’s latest policy meeting to preview the path of interest rates.

By 0027 GMT, the S&P/ASX 200 index was down 0.3% to 7,205.8 points after falling 0.7% on Monday.

The minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) September meeting, expected later today, will be closely evaluated by investors for clues about the direction in which interest rates will move forward.

The Reserve Bank of Australia kept interest rates steady for a third month at its latest meeting and signaled tighter control over inflation in the country.

“We expect the minutes to also reflect this minimal reassessment compared to the situation in August. If the minutes continue to reflect that a rate hike has been considered, this would support a tightening bias,” National Australia Bank analysts said in a note. .

Investors are also awaiting the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision on Wednesday, as interest rates are widely expected to be temporarily suspended.

In Sydney, interest rate-sensitive financial stocks fell 0.5%, with the “big four” banks losing between 0.5% and 0.9%.

Heavy mining stocks fell 0.4%, after a drop in iron futures and concerns about China’s faltering real estate sector.

The two largest companies in this sector, BHP Group and Rio Tinto, lost 0.8% and 0.4%, respectively.

On the other hand, gold stocks jumped by 1.4%, following the rise in bullion prices.

Energy stocks rose 0.5% after oil prices rose on expectations of tight supplies, which offset concerns about demand.

Shares of miner New Hope Corp rose 1.5% after it reported a nearly 11% increase in earnings for fiscal 2023, driven by strong demand and higher coal prices.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.2% (11,374.09 points). (Reporting by John Bigo in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun HK)