Afternoon trading March 15

Thanks @shovel40, @Fiji1 and morning crew.

Half-time wrap:

What could be the share market's worst week in a year and a half brought further falls today after signs of entrenched inflation weighed on Wall Street.

The ASX 200 slumped 98 points or 1.27% by mid-session as nine of eleven sectors declined. Energy provided upside after oil prices rallied to their highest since November. REITs also gained.

The Australian benchmark was on track for a weekly loss of 2.9%, thanks to heavy falls on Monday and today. The index traded this morning at its lowest in three weeks, extending a sharp retreat from last Friday's record close. At current levels, it looked set for its worst performance since a 275-point loss in August 2022.

The big four banks dragged for a second day as more analysts questioned valuations after last week's run all-time or multi-year highs. UBS said current prices required "optimistic assumptions" about the outlook. The broker has 'Sell' ratings on three of the four and a 'Neutral' rating for ANZ. Losses this morning ranged from 1.2% - 1.85%.

US stocks fell overnight as hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation figures forced traders to revise their expectations for the number of interest rate cuts priced in this year. The S&P 500 shed 0.29%.


Personal trading: Positive morning. Clipped tickets in TBN, IPD and BRX. Needed it after giving up a fair % of the week's earnings on NYR yesterday.