News: XIJ Australia shares end at three-week low on commodities drag

	  ASX falls for four straight sessions 

	  All commodity indexes trade in negative territory 

	  Tech stocks emerge as notable gainer  

(Updates to close)

Weakness in commodity stocks sent Australian shares to a three-week low on Thursday, as risk sentiment remained subdued due to uncertainty over the resolution of the U.S debt ceiling negotiations.

The S&P/ASX 200 index (xjo) ended 1.1% lower to 7,138.2 points, slipping for the fourth straight session.

Investors took flight from riskier assets after the standoff between U.S. President Joe Biden and his Republican counterpart on raising the debt ceiling did not reach a conclusion.

The possibility of the world's largest economy facing a debt default has risen, with ratings agency Fitch putting the United States' credit on watch for a possible downgrade.

"Although I remain optimistic that a resolution could be reached before the X-date, the prolonged negotiations have notably increased the risk of market disruptions and investor anxiety," Hebe Chen, a market analyst at IG Australia, said.

On the domestic front, miners .AXMM led losses on the bourse, diving about 2% due to continued weak iron ore prices in China, with Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO) and BHP Group Ltd (BHP) slipping 1.8% and 1.4%, respectively.

Gold shares .AXGD fell 3.1% to a seven-week low, with Newcrest Mining Ltd (NCM) and Northern Star Resources Ltd each (NST) falling 1.9% and 3.8%.

Some analysts believe the "sell in May and go away" phenomenon could have played out in markets, considering the stocks have been said to underperform historically from May to October.

The benchmark has lost about 2.3% in May as of date, its worst performance since February.

"It has not been so severe this year with 'sell in May'," Henry Jennings, senior market analyst at Marcustoday Financial Newsletter, said, "It seems more like a 'drift in May' or a 'May Laise'. The pace is picking up a little on the downside due to the debt negotiations."

Separately, Treasury Wine Estates Ltd b (TWE) emerged as the top benchmark loser, after it warned of inflation squeezing demand for its commercial-grade wine and driving up packaging costs.

Technology stocks .AXIJ provided some respite in an otherwise bleak benchmark, advancing about 2.4%, with accounting software provider Xero Ltd (XRO) firming 2.1%.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index (nz50) fell 0.1% to finish the session at 11,959.9 points.