On Friday, December 10, 2021, the Australian share market finished lower for the second day in a row, as investors continued to take profits off the table due to concerns about risks associated with the new omicron Covid variant and ahead of key events in the United States, including CPI data for November later today in global trading and a Federal Reserve policy meeting next week.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index fell 30.94 points, or 0.42 percent, to 7,353.51 at the close. The broader All Ordinaries index fell 21.51 points to 7,667.93, or 0.28 percent.
REDBUBBLE and ILUKA RESOURCES were the best-performing companies in this index, with gains of 10.26 percent and 7.29 percent, respectively. AFTERPAY and WHITEHAVEN COAL were the worst performers in this index, falling 4.37 percent and 4 percent, respectively.
Along with the S&P/ASX 200 Index, 7 of 11 sectors were lower.
The best-performing sector was utilities, which increased by 0.38 percent, while the worst-performing sector was healthcare, which fell by 1.8 percent.
Because of the drop in oil prices, the Energy sector fell 1.5 percent, while the Technology and Materials sectors fell 0.9 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.
Energy company shares fell after oil prices fell overnight due to concerns about China’s economic outlook, as Evergrande finally defaulted on its loans.
AVZ Minerals (AVZ) fell 8.5 percent to A$0.59 after raising A$75 million in stock at a price of $0.50, a 22% discount to the previous closing price. The monies raised will be used to complete site construction at the Manono Project and to vertically integrate in the lithium processing industry.
After revealing that their prostate cancer imaging product, Illuccix, has passed to the last stage of regulatory examination, Telix Pharmaceuticals (TLX) has finished up 6.3 percent to A$7.97.
