Healthcare companies were among the biggest large-cap advancers with ProMedicus lifting 2 per cent and EBOS Group adding 1.6 per cent.

Loading

The laggards

REITS (down 1.9 per cent), which rallied on Thursday, was the weakest sector. Goodman Group lost 2.8 per cent, Vicinity Centres lost 2.7 per cent and Charter Hall declined 1.5 per cent. A fund managed by Charter Hall has sold the leasehold interest in the University of NSW’s administration facility in Kensington for $80 million to raise cash to repay redemptions in the $2.5 billion unlisted Charter Hall Direct PFA Fund. The fund owns 20 small office blocks in its portfolio.

All four major banks traded lower including CBA (down 1 per cent), NAB (down 0.3 per cent) and Westpac (down 0.3 per cent) and ANZ (down 0.1 per cent)

Gold miners were also weaker as a strong US dollar weighed on the gold price. Evolution Mining (down 2.1 per cent), Northern Star (down 1.5 per cent) and Newcrest (down 1.8 per cent) were among the biggest large-cap decliners.

Iron ore heavyweight Fortescue shed 5.4 per cent as the iron ore price declined 3.6 per cent overnight.

The lowdown

Bell Direct market analyst Grady Wulff said despite the favourable retail sales data on Friday, markets were still factoring in a 25 basis point rate hike and remaining cautious ahead of earnings season.

“Retail sales is under control, but wages and services inflation remains sticky, so there could be further rate hikes to come to get them under control,” Wulff said.

“Reporting season kicks off on Monday so investment and trading volumes have been down in the last few weeks. Investors have been holding back to see how companies fared through the higher interest rate and inflation environment.”

Wulff said consumer discretionary stocks closed lower after the weaker retail sales data, and that interest-rate sensitive sectors such as REITS also declined.

Utilities stocks were broadly stronger, Wulff said, because they were more defensive, and investors were shifting out of riskier stocks ahead of reporting season.

Tweet of the day

Quote of the day

“I have been in this business for 34 years and I can tell you – no one does this,” Crown boss Ciaran Carruthers said, after the casino operator launched a new safer gambling program. He said Crown was committed to making gambling safer, even if it meant less turnover in its casinos.

You may have missed

An independent review of EY’s workplace culture, following the death of a staffer last year at its Sydney office, has revealed the extent of racism and sexual harassment at the consulting firm, as nearly half of employees reported overwork had affected their health.

With AP

The Market Recap newsletter is a wrap of the day’s trading. Get it each weekday afternoon.