At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 declined 44.15 points, or 0.65%, to 6,780.57. The broader All Ordinaries dropped 51.23 points, or 0.72%, to 7,060.16. Markets were closed on Tuesday for a public holiday.
Shares of material sector declined on falling iron ore prices, with BHP and Rio Tinto losing 3-4%. Smaller rival Fortescue Metals Group slumped 6.4% ahead of its quarterly production results.
Energy stocks also ended broadly, lower, with Woodside Petroleum, Santos and Beach Energy giving up 3-5%. Oil Search lost 3.3% after it reported an almost 42% drop in fourth-quarter revenue.
ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia NAB Business Conditions Indicate Strong Economic Recovery- Australia's business conditions index came in at 14 in December, the highest since September 2018, and above November's score of 7, signaling a strong momentum in the economic recovery, survey results from the National Australia Bank showed Wednesday. Meanwhile, the business confidence index fell to 4 in December from 13 in November. This likely reflects the impact of the Sydney Covid-19 outbreak through December.
The employment conditions index was back in positive territory for the first time since the start of the pandemic. The index for trading climbed 5 points, while profitability edged down 2 points. Nonetheless, all three sub-indices were above average, for the first time since early 2019. Capacity utilization returned to around pre-virus levels, rising to 80.9 percent from 79.1 percent in December, following the further gains in businesses conditions. At the same time, forward orders and capex remained subdued.
CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7739 after rising from levels around $0.768 yesterday.
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