By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - The S&P/ASX 200 lost 9.20 points or 0.12% to 7,370.10 in Tuesday trade, retracing gains of 0.3% in the previous session following a negative lead on Wall Street as investors remained cautious ahead of a key Federal Reserve meeting due later in the week, while major supermarket stocks fell after a disappointing trading update from Woolworths.
ASX 200 Futures were pointing 0.39% higher.
Among stocks, Woolworths Ltd (ASX:WOW) was down 9.42% and Coles Group Ltd (ASX:COL) shed 4.09% following a disappointing trading update from Woolworths which revealed COVID had weighed heavily on earnings during the first half.
BNPL stocks moved lower, with Zip Co Ltd (ASX:Z1P) down 1.22%, while Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX:APT) dropped 3.87% after shareholders voted unequivocally to approve its acquisition by Block Inc (NYSE:SQ). However, Ioupay Ltd (ASX:IOU) added 1.52%
The real estate sector extended gains, with Mirvac Group (ASX:MGR) up 0.68%, Charter Hall Group (ASX:CHC) gaining 5.28%, Goodman Group (ASX:GMG) up 1.76% and Stockland Corporation Ltd (ASX:SGP) adding 1.59%.
Tech also moved higher amid lower long term bond yields, with Appen Ltd (ASX:APX) up 0.39%, Xero Ltd (ASX:XRO) adding 1.47%, Wisetech Global Ltd (ASX:WTC) up 2.54% and Technology One Ltd (ASX:TNE) adding 0.63%
Meantime, Mesoblast Ltd (ASX:MSB) plummeted 15.88% after reports that Novartis has terminated its agreement with Mesoblast prior to closing.
On the bond markets, Australia 10-Year rates were near 2-month lows of 1.554% while United States 10-Year yields were at 1.426%.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 was 0.41% lower at 12,942.