By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - The S&P/ASX 200 lost 11.50 points or 0.16% to 7,304.70 during Wednesday’s trade, extending declines of 0.4% in the previous session amid losses in the real estate and technology sectors.
Among stocks, Real estate companies led the declines, down 1.3% collectively as Mirvac Group (ASX:MGR) lost 2.5%, Charter Hall Group (ASX:CHC) fell 2.2%, Goodman Group (ASX:GMG) dipped 2.3% and Stockland Corporation Ltd (ASX:SGP) declined 1.2%.
Consumer Discretionary lost 1.1% overall, with JB Hi-Fi Ltd (ASX:JBH) closing 4.8% lower after the release of a sales update. Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX:DMP) fell 1.2%, Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX:WES) lost 0.3% and Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX:TAH) eased 0.4%
Materials finished 0.9% lower, as Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO) lost 0.5%, BHP Billiton Ltd (ASX:BHP) dipped 0.4%, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX:FMG) lost 2.4% and Arizona Lithium Ltd (ASX:AZL) dropped 8.6%.
Information Technology also retreated 1% as Block Inc (ASX:SQ2) dropped 3.4%, Appen Ltd (ASX:APX) fell 4.1%, Megaport Ltd (ASX:MP1) lost 4.3%, Novonix Ltd (ASX:NVX) fell 6.8% and Brainchip Holdings Ltd (ASX:BRN) dipped 1.1%. Zip Co Ltd (ASX:ZIP) also declined 10.4%.
On the data front, Australian retail sales lifted 1.6% for a third consecutive month to a fresh record, smashing market expectations of a 0.5% increase.
On the bond markets, Australia 10-Year yields lifted to 3.548%, the highest levels since September 2014. Meantime, United States 10-Year rates were at 2.979%.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 added 0.2% to 11,702.