ASX falls as supermarkets, miners drag

In early trading the ASX200 was up modestly to close in on 7,200 but then fell, just as it did on Wednesday and Monday.

"That's starting to form a pretty formidable line in the sand for the local market," said City Index analyst Tony Sycamore, who had been expecting a post-election relief rally. 

"It's standing out to me like a broken thumb in many respects."

One large institutional player could be behind the sell wall at 7,200, Mr Sycamore said, adding that for him Thursday was a pivotal day for the local bourse.

"I've got a feeling that in a few days time we'll look back and say this was a real warning bell. It's hard to say with conviction, but that's how I'm leaning."

All sectors except tech were in the red on Thursday, with consumer staples the worst performer, down 2.5 per cent.

Hospitality and liquor company Endeavour Group fell 6.0 per cent, Woolworths was down 2.6 per cent and Coles dropped 2.2 per cent.

The heavyweight mining sector fell 1.0 per cent, with BHP down 0.9 per cent to $42.62, Rio Tinto down 1.1 per cent to $110.78 and Fortescue falling 3.7 per cent to $19.92.

Goldminers were also down as the precious metal slumped under $1850 for the first time since February, with Northern Star falling 3.4 per cent and Newcrest dipping 2.5 per cent.

Coalminers had a dismal day as the new Labor government talked up renewable energy, with Whitehaven falling 4.7 per cent, Coronado dropping 5.6 per cent and New Hope down 7.8 per cent on a quarterly update. 

The coalminer reported sales were down 21.9 per cent following weather disruptions and COVID-related labour shortages at its Bengalla mine in the Hunter Valley.

Yancoal was in a trading halt pending an announcement "relating to a potential material transaction".

The Australian Financial Review reported brokers were talking about a potential bid from Yancoal's Chinese parent company, Yankuang Group, which already owns a 62.3 per cent stake.   

The tech sector rose 1.0 per cent, getting a much-needed boost after Sydney-based machine learning company Appen confirmed it had received a tentative $1.2 billion takeover offer from Canadian tech conglomerate Telus International. 

Appen shares soared 28.9 per cent to $8.25 before going into a trading halt pending an announcement related to the potential transaction. 

Appen shares peaked at more than $43 in August 2020 but have fallen significantly since then.

Wisetech Global rose 2.4 per cent, Square gained 1.2 per cent and Tyro Payments climbed 5.1 per cent.

In the financial sector, three of the four big banks were down, with Westpac the outlier. Australia's oldest company was up 0.1 per cent to $23.90 after agreeing to merge its BT superannuation business with Mercer Super Trust.

The sale will simplify Westpac's business and support its focus on banking in Australia and New Zealand, chief executive Jason Yetton said.

Mercer Australia CEO David Bryant said the merger would create a combined fund in the top 15 nationwide by value, managing more than $65 billion in retirement savings on behalf of 850,000 Australians.

Elswhere in the banking sector, ANZ was down 0.4 per cent to $25.53, NAB dropped 0.3 per cent to $31.57 and CBA fell 0.7 per cent to $105.43.

The Aussie dollar was buying 70.74 US cents, from 71.11 cents at Wednesday's close.

ON THE ASX:

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index finished Thursday down 49.3 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 7,105.9

The All Ordinaries index closed 52.4 points, or 0.71 per cent lower, to 7,339.3.

CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:

One Australian dollar buys:

70.74 US cents, from 71.11 US cents when the ASX closed on Wednesday.

89.97 Japanese yen, from 90.38 yen.

66.34 Euro cents, from 66.55 cents.

56.30 British pence, from 56.71 pence.

109.50 NZ cents, from 109.30 NZ cents.