{"id":403422,"date":"2026-04-17T13:13:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T13:13:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/403422\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T13:13:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T13:13:16","slug":"australian-shares-fall-as-us-threatens-oil-blockade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/403422\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian shares fall as US threatens oil blockade"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australian Share Market Declines Amid Regional Tensions<\/p>\n

The Australian share market experienced a decline following the breakdown of Middle East peace talks and the announcement by the United States of a naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. This development has created uncertainty in global markets, particularly affecting energy prices and investor sentiment.<\/p>\n

On Monday, the benchmark S&P\/ASX200 index closed down 34.6 points, or 0.39 per cent, at 8,926.0. The broader All Ordinaries also fell, dropping 42.3 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 9,113.5. These figures reflect the ongoing concerns about regional stability and its impact on global trade routes.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Brent crude oil prices surged back above $US100 per barrel for the first time in nearly a week, rising by seven per cent to $US102. This increase was driven by US President Donald Trump\u2019s announcement that the US Navy would initiate a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz from midnight on Monday AEST. The move has raised fears of potential conflict and disruption in global oil supplies.<\/p>\n

An adviser to Iran\u2019s supreme leader warned that the country possesses \u201clarge, untouched levers\u201d to counter any naval blockade. Meanwhile, the Speaker of Iran\u2019s parliament and its top negotiator cautioned Americans that they might soon miss the days of $4 to $5 gas if tensions escalate further.<\/p>\n

Capital.com analyst Kyle Rodda suggested that the stage is now set for a potential hot war, with the possibility of strikes on Gulf energy assets and civilian infrastructure. Etoro market analyst Josh Gilbert echoed this sentiment, stating that the window for a peaceful resolution is narrowing, and investors should prepare for the likelihood that conditions could worsen before improving.<\/p>\n

Sector Performance on the ASX<\/p>\n

Out of the 11 sectors on the ASX, eight ended the day in negative territory. Telecommunications and utilities saw modest gains, while the energy sector rose by 2.1 per cent due to the surge in oil prices.<\/p>\n

Woodside and Ampol both climbed 2.6 per cent, Santos increased by 1.7 per cent, and New Hope added 4.6 per cent. These gains were primarily driven by the rising cost of oil, which has been a key factor influencing market movements.<\/p>\n

In contrast, the tech sector was the worst performer, falling by 1.8 per cent. This decline was partly attributed to a significant drop in Life360 shares, which fell 8.1 per cent to an 18-month low of $17.91. The company announced job cuts and a restructuring plan focused on an AI-led strategy.<\/p>\n

Key Stock Movements<\/p>\n

A2 Milk experienced a sharp decline, falling 13.0 per cent to an eight-month low of $8.04. The Kiwi milk company revised its guidance downward, citing challenges in supplying infant milk formula to the Chinese market due to the Middle East conflict.<\/p>\n

In the mining sector, iron ore giants performed well, with BHP rising 0.7 per cent to $54.35, Rio Tinto adding 0.5 per cent to $172.07, and Fortescue gaining 0.1 per cent to $20.28.<\/p>\n

However, goldminers struggled as the price of gold dropped to $US4,742 an ounce, a decrease of $44 from the previous day. Northern Star fell 2.0 per cent, Evolution slipped 2.4 per cent, and Westgold Resources declined 2.9 per cent.<\/p>\n

Financial Sector and Other Notable Stocks<\/p>\n

The financial sector saw most of the big four banks lower. NAB dropped 0.9 per cent to $44.95, Westpac retreated 0.4 per cent to $42.59, and CBA dipped 0.1 per cent to $183.20. ANZ remained flat at $38.84.<\/p>\n

EML Payments suffered a dramatic fall, plunging 35.7 per cent to a more than decade-low of 37 cents. The company revised its full-year earnings guidance, citing weaker-than-expected trading in the northern hemisphere.<\/p>\n

In the healthcare sector, Telix Pharmaceuticals rose 7.7 per cent to a six-month high of $15.77 after announcing a partnership with a US company that includes an up-front payment of US$40 million.<\/p>\n

Currency Movements<\/p>\n

The Australian dollar was trading at 70.44 US cents, down slightly from 70.62 US cents at 5pm on Friday. The currency also saw minor changes against other major currencies:<\/p>\n

112.47 Japanese yen, from 112.46 Japanese yen.60.29 euro cents, from 60.43 euro cents.52.53 British pence, from 52.63 British pence.120.85 NZ cents, from 120.89 NZ cents.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australian Share Market Declines Amid Regional Tensions The Australian share market experienced a decline following the breakdown of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":403423,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[72,113,61,60],"class_list":["post-403422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-business","tag-economy","tag-ie","tag-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=403422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/403423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=403422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=403422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=403422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}