Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index ended 0.98% lower on Thursday, weighed by declines in consumer discretionary, information technology and gold shares.
The broader decline followed a session where falling stocks outnumbered advancers by 720 to 394 on the Sydney exchange, with 396 issues unchanged. The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, a measure of implied volatility for the index, rose 1.47% to 10.74.
Among the top performers, Ramsay Health Care led gains with a 14.06% advance to A$50.21, reaching 52-week highs. Summerset Group Holdings added 10.85% to A$7.15, while Domino's Pizza Enterprises rose 7.71% to A$20.25.
The sharpest losses were recorded by Objective Corp, which fell 16.49% to A$6.23, marking a five-year low. Generation Development Group declined 15.89% to A$3.23, and Magellan Financial Group dropped 13.39% to A$9.57.
Commodities showed mixed performance, with gold futures for December delivery up 0.25% at $4,664.89 per troy ounce. Brent crude for November delivery fell 1.10% to $85.98 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery declined 1.11% to $81.32 per barrel.
The Australian dollar held steady against the U.S. dollar, trading at 0.72, while the AUD/JPY cross rose 0.21% to 114.51. The U.S. Dollar Index futures were little changed at 99.08.
