Australian shares slip as oil rebounds while banks and miners drag the ASX 200 lower

what happened

Australian shares extended their decline into a second day on Friday, Reuters reported, with most sectors in negative territory and banks and miners weighing most heavily. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 stood 0.5% lower at 9,101.70 as of 2321 GMT, although it was still on course for a third straight weekly rise of about 1%.

Earlier in the week, oil had hit multi-month lows after US President Donald Trump played down the chance of fresh strikes on Iran. However, attacks on energy facilities in Saudi Arabia and disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz pushed crude back up. That revived concerns about inflation, which has been squeezing economies since the Iran war began earlier this year.

Mining stocks fell 0.9% in line with weaker base metal prices, with BHP down 0.6% and Rio Tinto off 0.9%. Financials lost 0.6% as all four major banks traded lower, putting the sub-index on track for a second weekly decline. Technology shares dropped 1.2% after overnight losses in the Nasdaq Composite, where Nvidia fell following the resignation of CEO Jensen Huang. Energy was a rare gainer, up 1.1%, with Woodside and Santos each adding more than 1%. In New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 slipped 0.3% to 14,210.10, pulling back from a record reached on Thursday.

why it matters

For investors, the session underlines how sensitive Australian equities remain to Middle East headlines and oil price swings. Yields on short-term government bonds rose, with the one-year yield at 4.966%, and those yields typically track expectations for central bank rates. The next key event to watch is monthly employment data due next week.

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