Thanks afternoon crew. A challenging start to the week for many...

Thanks afternoon crew. A challenging start to the week for many of us. Iress came back after lunch, but only in chartless form and too late in the day for me to do much with it. But don't worry: all will be well, tomorrow, they assure us...

End-of-day summary:

The share market greeted a new financial year with a step backwards following a soft end to last week on Wall Street ahead of elections in the UK and France.

The ASX 200 eased 17 points or 0.22%. Gains in property, resource and utility stocks were outweighed by declines across the rest of the market. Tech stocks, healthcare providers and banks were notably weak.

US stocks retreated on Friday as political uncertainties overshadowed positive news on inflation. Britons go to the polls this week, hot on the heels of the first round of voting in France, held over the weekend. Meanwhile, last week's US presidential debate failed to answer questions about President Joe Biden's capacity to serve another four-year term.

The S&P 500 retreated 0.41%. A rise in treasury yields helped pull the Nasdaq down 0.71%.