Aussie shares flat as Wisetech Global plunges 22pct

The local share market has been struggling to keep its head above water, with losses by the bourse’s biggest tech company and its major miners balanced by a bounce-back by the big banks.

At lunchtime on Monday the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index down 7.4 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 8,288.8, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 29.1 points, or 0.034 per cent, to 8,541.8.

The ASX200 had been down by as much as 79.9 points, or 0.9 per cent, in early trading but by midday it was hovering in and out of positive territory.

A finish in the red would extend its losing streak to six days - its longest streak since a seven-session stretch in June 2022.

In the technology sector, Wisetech Global plunged 22.7 per cent to a six-month low of $94.14 following more turmoil at the cloud logistics platform.

Wisetech said four of its independent board members were stepping down, following “intractable differences” with the ongoing role of founder Richard White.

The company also announced that its revenue would be at the bottom end of its guidance, due to further delays to three “breakthrough” product launches.

Overall the tech sector had dropped 7.5 per cent, also weighed down by IRESS and Nuix. The former had sunk 16.2 per cent after posting its full-year results, while the latter was down 9.2 per cent on its half-year financials.

In the utility sector, APA Group climbed 7.3 per cent on the back of its half-year results.

The pipeline operator said it had grown its underlying earnings by 9.1 per cent, driven in part by strong contributions by its Pilbara business.

In the financial sector, all of the big four banks were in the green after last week’s sharp selloff.

ANZ was up 2.1 per cent, NAB had climbed 1.7 per cent, Westpac had gained 1.0 per cent and CBA had advanced 1.8 per cent.

In materials, all of the big mining giants were lower. BHP had dropped 1.4 per cent, Rio Tinto had fallen 2.3 per cent and Fortescue was down 0.2 per cent.

Perenti Limited was down 14.0 per cent after the mining services firm announced an underlying half-year profit of $81.7 million, up four per cent from a year ago.

In industrials, Reece Limited had fallen 11.4 per cent after the plumbing products company said its sales were down three per cent to $4.4 billion in in the six months to December 31.

“Our performance for the first half reflects the challenging trading environment in both regions (ANZ and the US) as mortgage rates and affordability continue to create near term headwinds in our sector,” said chairman and CEO Peter Wilson.

In currency, the Australian dollar was buying 63.88 US cents, from 63.95 US cents at 5pm AEDT on Friday.