The Australian sharemarket declined on Thursday, breaking a three-session winning streak.
The S&P/ASX200 index dropped 51.1 points, or 0.6%, to close at 8,378.7, with nine of 11 sectors posting losses.
Consumer discretionary and materials sectors led the declines. Aristocrat Leisure fell 2.7%, Wesfarmers dropped 1.5%, Tabcorp slid 2.3%, and JB Hi-Fi lost 2.2%.
Sentiment took a hit after news emerged that retail chain Rivers will shut down by mid-April, following the collapse of its parent company, Mosaic, which shed 21.7%.
However, Myer shares bucked the trend, gaining 6.1% after more than 96% of shareholders voted in favour of merging the department store with Premier Investments.
Major miners also weighed on the index as iron ore prices retreated. Rio Tinto dropped 1.4%, BHP fell 1.7%, and Fortescue Metals declined 2.2%, despite the latter reporting record-breaking second-quarter results.
On the bond markets, yields on 10-year and 2-year Australian government bonds eased, down 0.3% and 0.4%, to 4.474% and 3.938%, respectively.
