By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - The S&P/ASX 200 lost 71.20 points or 0.96% to 7313.00 in early trade on Tuesday, reversing gains of 0.57% in the previous session following a mixed session on Wall St as higher long term bond yields weighed on big tech stocks.
In coronavirus news, New South Wales tallied 863 fresh cases today, as Health Minister Brad Hazzard noted that residents need to remain "concerned about COVID" even with 60.4% of the state’s population fully vaccinated. Victoria added a record 867 cases, with restrictions set to ease slightly tonight as the state's hits its 80% single-dose vaccine target. Meantime, Queensland reported 3 local cases.
Among stocks, healthcare led declines, with Resmed Inc DRC (ASX:RMD) falling 2.73% and CSL Ltd (ASX:CSL) dropping 2.7%. Heavyweight miners are trading lower, with Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO), BHP Billiton Ltd (ASX:BHP) and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX:FMG) falling 1.2%, 0.8% and 2.73% respectively. Meantime, Energy stocks lifted on higher crude oil prices with Beach Energy Ltd (ASX:BPT) surging 7.85%, Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX:WHC) up 4.07% and Santos Ltd (ASX:STO) gaining 3.86%. Finally, Origin Energy Ltd (ASX:ORG) is up 3.55% after reporting a tripling of value in its investment in UK energy retailer Octopus.
ASX 200 Futures were trading 25 points or 0.34% lower.
On the data front, local retail sales came in at -1.7% in August, handily beating market expectations of -2.5%.
On the bond markets, Australia 10-Year bond yields were at 12-week highs of 1.435%, while United States 10-Year yields were at similar 12-week highs of 1.491%.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 remained little changed at 13227.48.