The ASX was unable to hold onto its early gains, ending the session down 0.48%.
The S&P/ASX 200 fell 37.1 points to 7,749.1 points, hitting a seven-month low and wiping off 4.27% over the past five trading sessions.
Ten of the 11 sectors were in the red by the closing bell. The financial sector slipped 0.65%, energy was down 0.53% and materials retreated 0.35%.
The gold miners bucked the trend as safehaven demand continued amid growing fears over the impact US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies will have.
The precious metals edged closer to its February peak today (13 March) to reach US$2,943 ($4,673) an ounce.
Westgold Resources (ASX:WGX) rallied 8.2% to $2.64, Bellevue Gold (ASX:BGL) advanced 5.83% to $1.27, Capricorn Metals (ASX:CMM) rose 5.38% to $784 and Genesis Minerals (ASX:GMD) added 5.23% to close at $3.22.
Capricorn announced today it had entered into a binding agreement with privately held Serena Minerals to acquire the Kings Find Project in Western Australia.
The coal miners witnessed a tumble in their share prices after Macquarie revised its price forecast downwards on softer demand and modest supply growth.
Yancoal Australia (ASX:YAL) slid 12.56% to $5.29, while New Hope (ASX:NHC) lost 8.58% to close at $3.73. Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) and Coronado Global Resources (ASX:CRN) fell 5.78% and 5.51%, respectively.
The S&P/ASX200 is Australia’s leading share market index and contains the top 200 ASX-listed companies in terms of market capitalisation, and accounts for about 80% of the country’s equity market. The index is designed to measure the performance of the 200 largest index-eligible stocks listed on the ASX by float-adjusted market capitalisation.
It is recognised as the institutional investable benchmark in the country.
Write to Angela East at Mining.com.au
Images: ASX & Stock
