Business · Markets · 2 hrs ago
Australian shares fall as miners and technology stocks weaken
Australian shares opened lower on Friday, with the S&P/ASX 200 down 0.4% in early trading.
The fall followed a sharp drop in US technology shares, including AI-related stocks, as investors questioned high prices and the cost of financing data centres and chips.
Mining stocks were a major drag, as iron ore futures fell 1% and shares in BHP, Fortescue and Rio Tinto declined.
Technology stocks on the Australian market also fell, while financial shares rose.
Oil prices climbed amid fears of supply disruption after attacks in Saudi Arabia, which Iran-backed Houthi militants claimed responsibility for.
The attacks add to concerns about wider conflict near the Strait of Hormuz, an important route for crude exports.
The market’s next direction will depend in part on how investors respond to technology company results and developments in the Middle East.
Australian shares opened lower on October 23 as mining and technology stocks weakened.
The S&P/ASX 200 fell 35.1 points, or 0.4 per cent, in early trade.
Mining stocks came under pressure as iron ore futures lost 1 per cent to US$90 a tonne.
Technology stocks fell after AI-related shares tumbled on Wall Street.
Oil prices rose amid concerns about attacks in Saudi Arabia and wider regional hostilities.
- Who
- Australian sharemarket investors and companies listed on the ASX.
- What
- The S&P/ASX 200 opened lower, with mining and technology stocks among the main areas of weakness.
- When
- October 23, 2026, in early trade.
- Where
- Australia; the article also reports overnight movements on Wall Street.
- Why
- Mining stocks weakened as iron ore futures fell, while technology stocks followed declines in AI-related shares on Wall Street.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.5 per cent at lunchtime as energy stocks and retailers fell.
The S&P/ASX 200 opened down 35.1 points, or 0.4 per cent, with mining stocks weighing on the index.
- S&P/ASX 200
- Down 35.1 points, or 0.4 per cent, in early trade on October 23
- Iron ore futures
- Down 1 per cent to US$90 a tonne
- BHP
- Down 2.5 per cent in early trade
- Fortescue
- Down 1.9 per cent in early trade
- Nasdaq composite
- Fell 2.6 per cent overnight