By Robb M. Stewart
MELBOURNE, Australia--A slump in oil prices and renewed worries
about the prospects for iron-ore producers weighed on Australian
resources stocks Thursday, pulling the market lower for the first
time in a holiday-shortened trading week.
The S&P/ASX 200 closed down 0.5% at 5932.2, with most key
subindexes in the red.
"The materials sector was the worst performer, falling 1.3%,"
Commonwealth Securities' Elvina Simpson said, pointing to new China
plans to prop up its own iron-ore industry by reducing a tax for
domestic mining companies.
Shares of BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP.AU), Rio Tinto Ltd. (RIO.AU)
and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (FMG.AU) fell 1.8%, 0.7% and 2.6%,
respectively. But BC Iron Ltd. (BCI.AU) bucked the trend with a
7.3% gain after it boosted third-quarter shipments by 20% and said
it would target further cost reductions to mitigate plunging prices
for the steelmaking commodity.
Energy stocks were also weaker after oil futures plunged in
overnight trading, in the wake of data that showed U.S. oil
inventories posted the largest one-week jump since 2001, reigniting
concerns about a supply glut that has helped drive down oil prices
by more than 50% from its mid-2014 peak.
Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL.AU) stocks fell 2.7%, while shares
of Oil Search Ltd. (OSH.AU) and Santos Ltd. (STO.AU) were down 0.3%
and 0.5%, respectively.
The major banks were all lower, with Westpac Banking Corp.
(WBC.AU) leading the decline with a 0.6% drop in its shares,
followed by Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd.
(ANZ.AU), whose shares declined 0.5%.
Retailer Myer Holdings Ltd. (MYR.AU) was again a standout, with
its stocks rising 5.3% in a move traders have attributed to recent
takeover speculation in local newspapers. Its shares have risen 15%
so far this week.
Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com
