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ASX down 0.3%: CSL shares fall

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2024-02-12

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Despite a record rally in US markets on Friday, the sharemarket experienced a decline, with the S&P/ASX 200 slipping by 0.27 per cent at 7,623.90 at 11:30am. This decline is primarily attributed to healthcare giant CSL, dropping 5.2 per cent due to abandoning plans for a drug seeking regulatory approval following weak trial results. However, consumer discretionary stocks, notably JB Hi-Fi, have shown resilience, with JB Hi-Fi's shares rising by 1.6 per cent due to better-than-expected sales and revenue in FY24's first half, highlighting a positive trend in the retail sector. Despite the divergence from the S&P 500's upward trajectory, driven by technology stocks' performance, Wall Street remains buoyant, leveraging a robust late-cycle jobs market and optimism in Silicon Valley for AI-driven growth and expanded profit margins.

The SPI futures are pointing to a fall of 34 points.

Best and worst performers

The best-performing sector is Information Technology, up 1.25 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Health Care, down 3.05 per cent.

The best-performing large cap is JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH), trading 5.89 per cent higher at $59.88. It is followed by shares in Harvey Norman Holdings (ASX:HVN) and Altium (ASX:ALU).

The worst-performing large cap is CSL (ASX:CSL), trading 4.58 per cent lower at $291.04. It is followed by shares in Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation (ASX:FPH) and IGO (ASX:IGO).

Commodities and the dollar

Gold is trading at US$2039.40 an ounce.

One Australian dollar is buying 65.29 US cents

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