Australian stock market closes lower; as of the close, the Australian S&P/ASX200 Index fell by 0.05%

Investing.com – The Australian stock market declined on Friday, led lower by sectors such as Information Technology, Consumer Goods, and Non-Essential Consumer Goods.

At the close in Sydney, the Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.05%.

The best-performing stock in the Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index was Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:TLX), which rose 14.46% (1.32 points) to close at 10.45. Meanwhile, QBE Insurance Group (ASX:QBE) increased by 7.13% (1.43 points), closing at 21.49; Austal Ltd (ASX:ASB) gained 5.70% (0.34 points), ending the session at 6.31.

The weakest-performing stock was Guzman Y Gomez Ltd (ASX:GYG), which dropped 13.11% (2.67 points) to close at 17.70. Megaport Ltd (ASX:MP1) declined 10.79% (1.18 points), closing at 9.76; Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX:LTR) fell 6.07% (0.11 points), ending at 1.63.

A total of 655 stocks on the Sydney Stock Exchange declined, surpassing the 475 stocks that gained, while 394 stocks remained unchanged, essentially flat.

Guzman Y Gomez Ltd (ASX:GYG) stock plummeted to a historic low, down 13.11% (2.67 points), closing at 17.70.

The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures implied volatility of Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index options, rose 1.51% to 11.82.

Gold futures April options contracts increased by 0.44% (21.96 points), reaching $5,019.36. In other futures, April WTI crude oil futures rose 0.62% (0.41 points), trading at $66.81, while April London Brent crude oil futures increased 0.56% (0.40), trading at $72.06.

AUD/USD remained unchanged at 0.20%, with the exchange rate at 0.70; meanwhile, AUD/JPY declined 0.15%, quoted at 109.24.

The US Dollar Index futures rose 0.07%, to 97.92.