Feeling flat after trade data

DISAPPOINTING Chinese trade data has given Australia’s mining and energy sectors a whack and kept the broader market flat after what promised to be a positive start to the week.

The benchmark ASX 200 index closed 1.2 points, or 0.02 per cent, lower at 5773.4 as early gains on US-China trade hopes evaporated.

The broader All Ordinaries ended down 1.6 points, or 0.03 per cent, at 5833.2.

The energy sector proved the biggest drag thanks to subdued oil prices, while the big miners also turned negative late in the day on news China’s trade surplus had dropped 16.2 per cent from the year before.

The big miners finished the day in the red, with BHP dropping 0.2 per cent to $32.71 and Rio Tinto down 0.3 per cent to $79.40.

The energy sector stayed down after oil prices fell 2 per cent in offshore trade on Friday, ending a nine-day rally.

Shares in Santos fell 0.1 per cent to $5.83, Woodside Petroleum dropped 0.5 per cent to $33.08, and Oil Search 0.8 per cent to $7.55.