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Aussie financial, tech stocks drag
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Gold stocks jump 7%
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Healius climbs 8% on takeover offer from Clinical Labs
By Mehr Bedi March 20 (Reuters) - Australian shares ended more than 1% lower on Monday dragged down by financials, as a weekend rescue deal for Credit Suisse and efforts by central banks to ease liquidity concerns in the banking sector highlighted underlying cracks in the system. The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 1.4% to end the session at 6,898.50, its lowest closing level since Nov. 4. The benchmark had closed 0.4% higher on Friday.
Global authorities made swift moves over the weekend to stem contagion worries with Swiss authorities engineering a shotgun merger of UBS and Credit Suisse, and several global central banks including the U.S. Federal Reserve saying they would enhance dollar swap lines. "While the UBS-Credit Suisse announcement has removed a banking pressure point in Europe, concerns remain around the state of the two-tier banking system in the U.S.," IG Group analyst Tony Sycamore said. In Australia, analysts expect an A$300 billion ($201.39 billion) refinancing task for the 'Big Four' banks to get harder, as appetite for new debt shrinks across markets roiled by concerns about banks' stability and liquidity. The prime focus of investors this week will be the Fed's two-day monetary policy meeting, where economists are widely expecting a 25 basis point interest rate hike, according to a Reuters Poll.
Financials fell about 1.8%, with all the 'Big Four' banks ending in the red. Local tech stocks tracked Friday's losses of their Wall Street peers, shedding 1.3%. ASX-listed Block Inc and Wisetech Global dipped 3.4% and 3.0%, respectively. Gold stocks , however, soared 7.4%, their biggest gain in about three years, even as bullion prices slid from their near one-year highs hit last week. Healthcare firm Healius Ltd jumped 8.3%, after receiving an A$1.52 billion takeover offer from Australian Clinical Labs . New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 1.4% to end at 11,564.75. (Reporting by Mehr Bedi in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
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