In early trade, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 23.1 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 4251.9, while the broader All Ordinaries index was down 22.4 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 4343.2.
BHP Billiton’s US-traded shares fell 3.3 per cent overnight to $US73.01, while Rio Tinto’s US-traded stock lost 3.5 per cent to $US55.15.
Clothing and outdoor goods retailer Kathmandu has reported a slide in first half profit due to lower margins. Kathmandu posted a net profit of $NZ6.0 million ($4.68 million) for the six months to January 31, compared with $NZ10.5 million last year
The Australian dollar has fallen on fresh fears that China’s economy could slow down at a faster pace than anticipated. At 7am the Australian dollar was trading at $US1.0480 down from $US1.0577.
Westpac New Zealand senior market strategist Imre Speizer said the market expected a slowdown to occur, but fresh news from Chinese data and global mining companies pointed to a faster pace of cooling than previously suggested.
‘‘There have been a number of news pieces on China in the last 24 hours,’’ he said.
‘‘We had the mining companies - notably BHP Billiton - saying they are seeing less demand from China, and that Chinese steel production is down. We also saw Chinese cars statistics yesterday reporting that they’re unlikely to meet their car sales forecasts for the year, and then the lift in fuel prices as well."
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