* Westpac names John McFarlane as chairman
* Class-action filed against CBA pension arm
* CIMIC to take A$1.8 bln one-off charge
By Shreya Mariam Job
Jan 23 (Reuters) - Australian shares fell on Thursday as a tumble in oil prices knocked over energy stocks, while a slump in heavyweight CIMIC Group CIM.AX also weighed on the index.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO dropped 0.8% or 56.10 points to 7076.60 by 0058 GMT. The benchmark closed 0.9% higher on Wednesday.
Losses were seen across the board, with energy and industrial stocks leading declines, while upbeat jobs data dampened hopes of a near-term interest rate cut. still the best month we've had in more than eight years and the best start we've had to a new year since the mid-1980s. So, it is bound to happen that eventually we see the market pull back a bit," said Steven Daghlian, market analyst at CommSec.
Energy stocks .AXEJ dropped as much as 1.9% to their lowest in over two weeks as oil prices slumped over 2% on worries of excess supplies. O/R
Shares of heavyweight oil and gas explorer Worley Ltd WOR.AX dropped as much as 2.5%, while gas major Santos Ltd STO.AX declined 2.7%.
Contractors CIMIC Group CIM.AX and Downer EDI DOW.AX also dragged the benchmark, losing as much as 20.5% and 26.3% each.
Sydney-based CIMIC said it was planning to exit the Middle East with the sale of its stake in BIC Contracting (BICC) and expects to take a one-off charge of A$1.8 billion ($1.23 billion), pushing its shares to an over three-year low. services provider Downer revised its annual profit guidance for 2020 from A$365 million to A$300 million owing to underperforming projects. stocks .AXFJ dipped 0.2%, with shares of Westpac Banking Corp WBC.AX slipping 0.5%. The scandal-hit lender named industry veteran John McFarlane as chairman, entrusting him to help steer it through its troubled times. Bank Of Australia CBA.AX was up marginally despite a class-action lawsuit filed against the lender's pension arm for allegedly not acting in customers' interest for insurance policies. stocks .AXHJ also dragged the benchmark lower. Shares of biotherapeutics firm CSL Ltd CSL.AX fell as much as 1.6% after scaling a new peak in the previous session.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 slipped marginally to 11,883.05.
Air New Zealand AIR.NZ dropped 0.7%, while a2 Milk Co ATM.NZ shed 1.4%.