(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is little changed on Wednesday after gains in recent sessions and following the negative cues overnight from Wall Street amid uncertainty about a new stimulus bill as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the White House struggled to reach an agreement on a broad relief package. Investors also digested mixed earnings results from local companies.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is lower by 3.40 points or 0.05 percent to 6,192.30, after touching a low of 6,174.70 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 1.70 points or 0.03 percent to 6,398.50. Australian stocks rose for a seventh straight session on Tuesday.
In the banking space, Westpac, National Australia Bank, ANZ Banking and Commonwealth Bank are lower in a range of 1.1 percent to 1.7 percent.
Bank of Queensland reported a 61 percent fall in profit for the full year, slashed its annual dividend, and announced the sale of its St. Andrew's Insurance business for A$23 million to private investment firm Farmcove Investment Holdings. The bank's shares are gaining more than 4 percent.
Among the major miners, Rio Tinto is sliding 0.4 percent and Fortescue Metals is down 0.2 percent, while BHP Group is edging up 0.1 percent.
Gold miners are weak after gold prices snapped a three-day winning streak to close lower overnight. Newcrest Mining is declining more than 1 percent and Evolution Mining is down almost 1 percent.
Oil stocks are also declining, even as crude oil prices rose overnight. Woodside Petroleum is losing more than 2 percent, while Oil Search and Santos are lower by more than 1 percent each.
In the tech sector, Afterpay is rising almost 3 percent and Appen is advancing almost 1 percent, while WiseTech Global is down 0.4 percent.
Afterpay said that Australian regulator AUSTRAC will not take further action against the company as an external auditor report found Afterpay to be a 'low risk business' for money laundering.
CSL reported a more than 9 percent increase in its full-year net profit after tax and narrowed its profit outlook for the next year. The biotech giant's shares are advancing more than 1 percent.
In economic news, Australia will see October results for the consumer confidence index from Westpac today.
On Wall Street, stocks closed lower on Tuesday following the strong upward move seen over the past several sessions. The pullback may partly have reflected profit taking and uncertainty about a new stimulus bill as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the White House struggled to reach an agreement on a broad relief package. Negative sentiment was also generated in reaction to news that Johnson & Johnson has paused a late-stage trial of its Covid-19 vaccine candidate due to an unexplained illness in a study participant.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq edged down just 12.36 points or 0.1 percent to 11,863.90. The Dow slid 157.71 points or 0.6 percent to 28,679.81 and the S&P 500 fell 22.29 points or 0.6 percent to 3,511.93.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on Tuesday. While the German DAX Index slumped by 0.9 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slid by 0.6 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively.
Crude oil prices rose sharply on Tuesday, lifted by data showing a notable jump in Chinese crude oil imports in the month of September. WTI crude for November delivery climbed $0.77 or about 2 percent to $40.20 a barrel.
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