End-of-day summary:
Australian shares closed at a two-week low after the Reserve Bank indicated it was increasingly concerned about inflation.
The ASX 200 declined 33 points or 0.42%. Energy producers outperformed after crude hit a two-month high. However, the two sectors with the biggest weighting - materials and financials - both fell.
Mixed leads from Wall Street were compounded by fears of further rate hikes after the RBA warned a "material" rise in inflation expectations could warrant "significantly higher interest rates to bring inflation back to target". Consumer prices grew last month at the fastest pace in six months.
The minutes from last month's policy meeting said, "Information received since the previous meeting had reinforced the need to be vigilant to upside risks to inflation, and that the extent of uncertainty at present meant it was difficult either to rule in or rule out future changes in the cash rate target."
US stocks finished higher overnight as gains in megacap tech stocks once again masked weakness across much of the wider market. The S&P 500 firmed 0.27%.
