The Australian sharemarket fell amid a sell-off in energy and healthcare stocks over fears economic figures to be released this week may show an uptick in inflation, putting pressure on the Reserve Bank to lift interest rates.The S&P/ASX 200 slumped 60.7 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 7735.3 at the close.
Obesity could be an underlying cause of sleep apnoea and weight-loss drugs could reduce the number of patients needing ResMed’s CPAP sleep apnoea treatment. Shares in embattled Star Entertainment tumbled 4 per cent after the company told the ASX that high rollers continue to avoid its three casinos, and the costs associated with its regulatory compliance are eroding its earnings.eToro market analyst Josh Gilbert said inflation continues to be a “difficult beast to tame”, as economists expect the consumer price indicator for May – to be released on Wednesday – to increase to 3.8 per cent, from 3.6 per cent in April.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 Index slipped 0.2 per cent on Friday, but still remained close to its record high and capped its eighth winning week in the past nine. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up less than 0.1 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.2 per cent.Nvidia shares again dragged on the market, falling 3.2 per cent.