Australian Markets Modestly Lower

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is modestly lower on Tuesday, reversing some of the gains in the previous two sessions, despite the broadly positive cues from European markets and lack of cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling well below the 8,700 level, with weakness in gold miners, energy, financial and technology stocks partially offset by gains in iron ore miners.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 20.90 points or 0.24 percent to 8,671.10, after hitting a low of 8,663.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 17.90 points or 0.20 percent to 8,897.50. Australian stocks closed modestly higher on Monday.

Among the major miners, Rio Tinto and Fortescue are edging up 0.5 percent each, while Mineral Resources is gaining more than 1 percent. BHP Group is flat.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Beach energy is edging down 0.3 percent, while Woodside Energy and Origin Energy are down almost 1 percent each. Santos is flat

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is down almost 1 percent. Zip and WiseTech Global are declining almost 2 percent each, while Xero and Appen are edging down 0.4 percent each.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Northern Star Resources and Resolute Mining are edging down 0.2 to 0.4 percent each, while Evolution Mining is down almost 1 percent, Newmont is losing more than 1 percent and Genesis Minerals is declining almost 2 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and ANZ Banking are losing almost 1 percent each, while National Australia Bank is down more than 1 percent and Westpac is declining almost 2 percent.

In other news, shares in Kogan.com soared almost 18 percent after it reported upbeat sales for the second half.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.717 on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, the markets were closed on Monday for Memorial Day holiday.

The major European markets moved to the upside over the course of the session. Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 moved up 2.01% and 1.76%, respectively. The UK market remained closed for Bank Holiday.

Crude oil prices slumped to hit two-week lows on Monday amid expectations that a potential U.S.-Iran peace deal could restore smoother energy flows through the key shipping route. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery was down 5.2 percent at $91.56 per barrel.