The ASX looked set to end the last session of a third straight winning month with a minor retrace after resource stocks hit their lowest level of the year.
At 1pm EST the ASX 200 was off 19 points or 0.3% at 5903 as the metals & mining index slid 1.3% to its weakest level since the lead-up to Christmas. The big miners lost ground on overseas markets overnight in line with declines in copper, iron ore and zinc.
The gold sector fell 3%, materials 0.9% and consumer staples 0.8%. IT rallied 1.7% for the best of the sectors. Utilities gained 0.8% and industrials 0.6%.
The benchmark index was on course to add around 40 points for the month and seal its fifth advance in six months since the US presidential election lit a fire under global stock markets. The market has risen more than 800 points since the November pre-election low.
Base metals declined overnight amid concerns that Chinese regulators are once again moving to dampen spending.
"We are short on base metals currently. On the fundamental side I think that the market is getting worried about the tightening monetary process in China, which has just begun. There will be concrete evidence of an economic slowdown in the months ahead," Gianclaudio Torlizzi, partner at consultancy T-Commodity in Italy, told Fairfax.
China's Shanghai Composite retreated 0.27%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.34% and Japan's Nikkei 0.2%. Dow futures were recently down five points or 0.02%.
Crude oil futures bounced 35 cents or 0.71% this morning to US$49.32 a barrel. Gold futures gained 60 cents or 0.05% to US$1,266.50 an ounce. The dollar was buying 74.73 US cents.
The Day trading forum seems to be going through one of its periodic slumps when a lack of clear trading trends and opportunities pushes many participants to the sidelines. The way I see it, there are two methods to success in the market: firstly, you can make so much money in the good times that you can afford to sit out the lean times (I never got the hang of that); or secondly, you can develop an approach that provides some sort of living regardless of conditions, even if sometimes it's scraps. That's pretty much how I operate. Can't tell you how to do it, but I can recommend you find a niche, an approach of your own where trades appear to you that others don't necessarily see. A lot of it comes from spending enough time with the market that eventually it enters your DNA. It takes a while, but if you stick at it, it will happen. Trading: MUS provided good liquidity and volatility for those willing to risk a falling share. Been in and out twice. Tried PNN, but gave up and exited for brokerage. ESE has one enthusiastic seller - small dabble there in the hope he has the wisdom to let the sp recover a little before the close.
