Australian shares ended lower on Tuesday. Losses in mining and gold stocks weighed on the market. The S&P ASX 200 fell 0.10% by the close in Sydney.
Gold related stocks and materials companies saw the most pressure. These sectors pulled the broader index down. Some stocks still managed to rise. Summerset Group Holdings was the top gainer. The stock climbed 2.94% and closed at 10.52.
Temple and Webster Group also moved higher. It gained 1.93% to finish at 13.76. Netwealth Group rose 1.79% and ended the session at 25.62.
On the downside, Liontown Resources dropped sharply. The stock fell 4.78% to 1.60. Newmont Corporation declined 4.15% and closed at 149.05. Objective Corp also struggled. Its shares slipped 4.10% to 16.36.
More stocks fell than rose during the session. 584 stocks ended lower while 518 advanced. Another 375 stocks finished unchanged.Market volatility remained low. The ASX 200 VIX index slipped 0.19% to 10.00.
In commodities, gold prices moved higher. Gold futures for February rose 1.06% to $4,389.50 per ounce. Oil prices also edged up. U.S. crude gained 0.21% to $58.20 a barrel. Brent crude rose 0.20% to $61.61 a barrel.
In currency markets, the Australian dollar was mostly steady. AUD USD traded near 0.67. AUD JPY rose 0.28% to 104.76.
The U.S. dollar remained weak. Dollar index futures slipped 0.05% to 97.68.
