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Markets Live: ASX slumps as banks retreat
Shares tumble amid broad selling ahead of next week's start of earnings season, with banks and US dollar earners weighing the most.
Patrick Commins writes on Markets specialising in Equity Markets, Currencies, Debt Markets. Based in our Sydney newsroom, Patrick is Markets deputy editor and has over six years experience as a journalist.
Shares tumble amid broad selling ahead of next week's start of earnings season, with banks and US dollar earners weighing the most.
The sharemarket enjoyed a rousing mid-week session, as climbing commodity prices boosted mining stocks.
Shares started the week with a sell-off in banks and miners as last week's brief spell of optimism faded.
Bank stocks lost steam on Friday as investors booked profits after two days of strong gains, weighing on the overall market.
Banks again led the ASX higher in a session full of corporate action, while solid job numbers briefly lifted the Aussie dollar to a fresh high.
North Korea's missile test was a powerful reminder that politics is something investors can ill afford to ignore.
Economists are assessing whether the RBA will stay in tune with the marked global shift towards tighter global monetary policy settings and adopt a more hawkish tone this week.
Investors are now free to concentrate on the diplomatic crisis between Qatar and its Arab Gulf countries after crude prices bounced smartly last week.
Monetary policymakers around the world are prepping markets for a gradual removal of central bank stimulus - but are investors ready? We ask three experts.
Shares rebounded strongly from Wednesday's thrashing, while late news of a state-based bank tax undercut solid bank gains.
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