Financials, miners drag Australia shares lower; inflation data in focus
ASX 200 marks worst session in 2-weeks
Miners at over 1 1/2 year lows
CPI data due on Wednesday
By Megha Rani
June 24 (Reuters) -Australian shares closed lower on Monday, led by losses in miners and financials, while caution prevailed ahead of a crucial domestic inflation reading due later in the week that will likely provide cues on the central bank's rate easing policy.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO closed 0.8% lower at 7,733.7 points. The benchmark clocked its biggest intraday percentage loss since June 11.
Investors keenly await May's consumer price inflation, due on Wednesday, as the Reserve Bank of Australia resorted to a hawkish hold in interest rates and also reiterated that it was open to hikes in the future due to sticky inflation.
"Any upside surprise (for May CPI), even marginally, could become the final straw to trigger an even tighter monetary policy set-up for the foreseeable future," said Hebe Chen, market analyst at IG Markets.
Interest rate-sensitive financial stocks .AXFJ dropped 0.6%, with the "Big Four" banks down between 0.3% and 1%.
Miners .AXMM lost 1.5% to mark their lowest level since Nov. 2022 as iron ore prices tumbled due to demand concerns in top consumer China. IRONORE/
Majors BHP Group BHP.AX, Rio Tinto RIO.AX and Fortescue FMG.AX declined between 0.1% and 0.8%.
Healthcare firms .AXHJ followed suit to drop 1.6%, with sector leader CSL Ltd CSL.AX giving up as much as 0.9%. The sub-index logged its worst session since May 17.
Depository shares of U.S.-based ResMed Inc RMD.AX lost 13.2%.
"The healthcare sector is shaken by the tumble of sleep apnoea device manufacturer ResMed, whose core market is under serious threat from the advent of weight-loss drugs," Chen added.
Energy stocks .AXEJ fell 1.9% to their worst session since May 1, after crude oil prices extended losses. O/R
Woodside Energy WDS.AX and Santos STO.AX dropped 2% and 1.6%, respectively.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell 0.5% at 11,627.86 points at the close of the trade.
Reporting by Megha Rani in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman
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