Day traders' after-market lounge March 5

Thanks afternoon crew.

End-of-day summary:

Aussie shares finished modestly lower for a second day as the global market rally took a breather ahead of US jobs data and commentary from the Federal Reserve later this week.

The ASX 200 eased 12 points or 0.15% to 7724. Gold miners provided much of the session's excitement, rising for a fourth day after the yellow metal logged a second straight record close overnight. The domestic sector has lagged the latest rally, trading at four-month lows as recently as last Wednesday. Genesis Minerals gained 7.35% today, Silver Lake Resources 5.86% and Newmont 5.46%.

Lithium and nickel miners dragged as traders took profits from the recent recovery in commodity prices. Dividend payouts weighed on the likes of Coles and Endeavour Group.

Today's weakness mirrored a soft session on Wall Street overnight, where the S&P 500 dipped 0.12%. The second half of the week brings several employment indicators and Congressional testimony from Fed Chair Powell. S&P 500 futures were trading 0.16% lower at the Australian market close.