Volume down as G7 meeting looms

THE Australian share market lost ground yesterday on a day of low trading volumes as investors held fire ahead of the G7 meeting in Canada.

The benchmark ASX 200 index closed down 12.1 points, or 0.2 per cent at 6045.2, while the broader All Ordinaries index was 12.6 points, also 0.2 per cent, weaker at 6156.8 points.

Trading volumes were down about a third as investors paused ahead of the European Central Bank meeting next week and the G7 meeting today.

Energy stocks performed well after concerns about supply from Venezuela lifted oil prices, with Origin Energy gaining 0.9 per cent to $9.94, Oil Search 0.7 per cent to $8.38 and Woodside Petroleum 0.7 per cent to $33.48.

Coles owner Wesfarmers — a day after unveiling a target for house-brand products to make up 40 per cent of sales at the grocery chain within five years — slipped 12c to $46.36. Rival Woolworths lost 1c to $28.87.

Industrials was the worstperforming sector, with rail freight group Aurizon off 4.2 per cent to a two-year low of $4.14, and Transurban down 0.8 per cent to $11.67.

BHP Billiton dipped 0.03 per cent to $34.07 while rival Rio Tinto rose 0.7 per cent to $86.60 after committing to a $41 million joint venture with state-owned China Minmetals.

In the finance sector, the Commonwealth Bank was up 0.2 per cent to $69.37, but Westpac fell 0.3 per cent to $27.61, ANZ 0.3 per cent to $26.66 and National Australia Bank 0.1 per cent to $26.38.