• ASX slumped 1.5pc today after a selloff in all sectors
  • Gold stocks closed higher on flight to safety
  • Qantas terminated its interest in Alliance Aviation

 

Aussie shares were on the back foot today as the benchmark ASX 200 index slipped by more than -1.5%.

Overnight, Wall Street also sold off heavily with the S&P 500 index dropping by -1.34%.

Sentiment has plummeted as concerns grow that war in the Middle East could explode into an all-out regional one after Iran called for an Israel blockade following the deadly explosion at a Gaza hospital.

Local traders also reacted negatively to the Aussie unemployment data today, which shows the jobless rate falling unexpectedly to 3.6% in September (vs 3.7% estimate) due to people leaving the workforce.

“The fall in the unemployment rate in September mainly reflected a higher proportion of people moving from being unemployed, to not in the labour force,” said Kate Lamb, ABS head of labour statistics.

On the ASX, all 11 sectors finished in the red – led by Staples, Healthcare and Mining, which fell by around 1.5%-1.8% each. Gold stocks held steady, however, as capital flowed to safe havens.

There were also numerous large-cap stocks holding AGMs today – including ARB, ASX, Nick Scali, Nuix, Orora, and Transurban – and providing their updates for the September quarter.

Later tonight, all eyes will turn to the speech by US Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell.

 

BIG CAP WINNERS

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Gold stocks Northern Star (ASX:NST), Evolution Mining (ASX:EVN) and Newcrest (ASX:NCM) led the large cap cohort today on flight to safety.

Northern Star climbed 4% despite reporting total gold sales for the quarter of 369,000 oz, down from 426,000 oz in the prior quarter due to shutdowns at its production centres.

 

BIG CAP LOSERS

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Telix Pharma (ASX:TLX) fell as much as -17% following preliminary results from its prostate cancer trial.

Telix told the market that its its ProstACT SELECT Study of TLX591 on prostate cancer has achieved its primary objectives, confirming the safety and tolerability profile of TLX591 administered in two cycles, 14 days apart (total cumulative dose 152mCi).

Qantas (ASX:QAN) dipped -3% after terminating the May 2022 agreement by which QAN planned to acquire 100% of Alliance Aviation Services (ASX:AQZ), after the ACCC said it would reject the deal due to competition concerns.

Netwealth Group (ASX:NWL) tumbled 9% after higher-than-expected partial withdrawals from high net worth and ultra-high net worth accounts, due to financial market conditions and resulting off-platform investments in term deposits. A number of initiatives have recently been implemented to retain more of these asset, said the company.