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Australian shares moved lower on Monday as a sharp decline in Westpac Banking Corporation weighed on the financial sector, while gains in mining stocks helped limit broader market losses ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) interest rate decision.
The S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5% to 9,220.30 points by 0057 GMT, giving back some of its momentum after gaining 3.2% last week. Investors were also assessing corporate earnings during the closely watched fiscal 2027 reporting season.
Westpac shares tumbled more than 5%, marking their steepest intraday decline since March 30. The Australian lender warned that investor housing credit growth could halve next year and reported a 20% decline in mortgage applications. Quarterly cash earnings came in at A$1.8 billion for the period ended June 30, compared with A$1.9 billion a year earlier.
The Westpac selloff pressured Australian banking stocks, pushing the financials sub-index down 1.9% for its biggest intraday decline in three months. Commonwealth Bank of Australia, ANZ and National Australia Bank dropped between 1.3% and 2.4%.
Attention is now turning to Tuesday’s RBA monetary policy decision. Markets broadly expect the central bank to leave interest rates unchanged, with investors watching closely for signals about the outlook for Australian monetary policy.
Mining stocks provided support to the ASX 200 as stronger metal prices lifted the sector by 1.4%. BHP Group and Rio Tinto advanced more than 1% each, while Fortescue gained 0.7%.
Australian gold miners also rallied as higher bullion prices pushed the gold sub-index up more than 3% to its highest level since mid-April. Evolution Mining gained 1.3%, while St Barbara jumped 4.7%.
Elsewhere, Treasury Wine Estates shares surged nearly 8% after the Penfolds producer announced plans to reduce U.S. North Coast vintage volumes from 2026 and write down inventory. The company also forecast unaudited FY26 EBITS of A$492.3 million, above its previous A$480 million to A$490 million guidance range.
Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 gained 0.5% to 13,892.88 points.
