Australian shares finished the trading day in negative territory on Thursday, with the S&P/ASX 200 slipping 0.43% at the Sydney close. Sector-level weakness in Gold, Metals & Mining and Resources was cited as a key drag on the market.
On the winners' list, Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX:TWE) led gains, rising 6.98% or 0.36 points to close at 5.52. Premier Investments Ltd (ASX:PMV) added 5.92% or 0.78 points to finish the session at 13.95, while Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX:NWL) rose 5.96% or 1.35 points to end at 24.00.
At the other end of the board, Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX:PDN) recorded the heaviest loss, down 8.98% or 1.22 points to 12.36. Neuren Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:NEU) declined 9.77% or 1.43 points to finish at 13.20, and DroneShield Ltd (ASX:DRO) fell 8.33% or 0.29 points to close at 3.19.
Market breadth was negative, with falling stocks outnumbering rising ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange by 862 to 415, while 359 issues finished unchanged.
Volatility measures edged higher as the S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which reflects the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, increased 0.47% to 11.48.
Commodity markets showed weakness on the day. Gold Futures for April delivery dropped 1.85% or 91.50 to $4,859.30 a troy ounce. Crude oil for March delivery declined 2.30% or 1.50 to $63.64 a barrel, and the April Brent contract fell 2.26% or 1.57 to trade at $67.89 a barrel.
Foreign exchange moves were modest. AUD/USD was unchanged 0.36% to 0.70, while AUD/JPY moved lower, falling 0.48% to 109.28. The US Dollar Index Futures rose 0.20% to 97.68.
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This session highlighted divergence across sectors: selective stock-level strength in consumer-facing and wealth-management names contrasted with pronounced weakness in a subset of resource and specialist technology companies. Trading breadth, rising implied volatility and softer commodity prices underpinned the session's cautious tone.