The Australian sharemarket edged lower on Monday as weakness in technology and mining stocks outweighed gains in the energy sector, with rising oil prices following continued United States-Iran hostilities keeping investors cautious.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index slipped 5.4 points, or 0.1%, to close at 8,791.3, with six of the 11 sectors finishing in negative territory.
Information technology was the weakest-performing sector as investors continued to rotate out of growth stocks.
Xero fell 2.1%, WiseTech Global dropped 3.6%, TechnologyOne declined 1.5%, NextDC eased 0.5% and Life360 lost 1.4%.
The Materials sector also weighed on the benchmark. Rio Tinto fell 1.9%, Fortescue Metals declined 0.5%, while BHP ended the session unchanged.
South32 bucked the broader trend, rising 4.6% after exceeding its 2026 production guidance across its key operations. Strong performances from its Sierra Gorda copper mine, Cannington and manganese assets helped lift quarterly sales volumes by 15%.
Gold miners also retreated despite bullion holding above the US$4,000 an ounce level.
Northern Star Resources fell 1.0%, Evolution Mining declined 2.1%, and Newmont lost 1.1%.
Energy stocks outperformed as crude oil futures climbed more than 2% after the United States and Iran intensified military strikes over the weekend, fuelling concerns over global supply disruptions.
Woodside Energy gained 1.4%, Santos added 2.1%, Beach Energy rose 1.7%, and Viva Energy jumped 3.9%.
Deep Yellow surged 6.1% after awarding A$34 million in civil and concrete construction contracts for its flagship Tumas uranium project in Namibia, ahead of a final investment decision expected in the December quarter.
On the bond markets, Australian 10-year and two-year government bond yields both rose 0.9% to 4.964% and 4.577%, respectively.
