ASX falls as miners slump, Wall Street sharply lower as US inflation worsens

The Australian sharemarket has fallen in early trade with miners falling sharply while Wall Street dropped to its worst day since July following the latest signal that US inflation is getting worse.

The S&P/ASX 200 was 53.9 points, or 0.6 per cent lower, to 8674, with materials the heaviest weight on the bourse. The ASX lost 0.6 per cent on Wednesday. The Australian dollar was weaker at US69.66¢.

Mining stocks fell sharply with gold prices coming under further pressure and iron ore futures continuing to linger at two-year lows. BHP lost 3.4 per cent, Fortescue fell 1.4 per cent and Rio Tinto shed 2.7 per cent. The price of gold slumped on the US inflation report, reigniting worries that the Federal Reserve will need to raise interest rates further to combat inflation. Northern Star lost 1.9 per cent and Evolution Mining was down 1.8 per cent in early trade.

Financial stocks climbed in early trade, clawing back some of their heavy losses from Wednesday. Commonwealth Bank added 1 per cent, National Australia Bank rose 0.3 per cent, Westpac added 0.5 per cent and ANZ Bank gained 0.7 per cent in early trade.

Energy stocks are steady after oil prices held again as a flare-up in attacks from Russia to the Middle East threatened supply that only recently recovered to near pre-war levels. Santos rose 1.1 per cent in early trade while Woodside Energy dipped 0.2 per cent and refiner Ampol slid 0.1 per cent. West Texas Intermediate held near $US95 a barrel, after rising 1 per cent on Wednesday. Brent settled around $US106.

WiseTech jumped 4.4 per cent after announcing that ASIC had dropped its insider trading investigation into founder Richard White, but the corporate regulator is still pursuing one of the logistics software company’s employees. Technology stocks are largely lower on the back of a slump in tech stocks on Wall Street, with Codan slumping 4.2 per cent while Xero shed 2.4 per cent and Technology One was 1 per cent weaker.

The Australian dollar was trading stronger at US69.75¢ at 10.31am AEDT.

Overnight, the S&P 500 sank 1.1 per cent for a fifth loss in the six days since setting its all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 48 points, or 0.1 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite slid 1.9 per cent as stocks in the artificial-intelligence industry led the way lower.

Stocks felt pressure from rising yields in the bond market, where worries grew after a report said US consumers had to pay prices for fuel, food and other costs of living last month that were 3.7 per cent higher overall than a year earlier.