Daily Market Update: 26 June 2026

Resources drag ASX lower as rate hike expectations strengthen
The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fell 59.70 points, or 0.7 per cent, to 8,748.70 on Thursday as weaker resources stocks outweighed gains in defensive sectors. Oil-linked names came under pressure after Brent crude fell 1.7 per cent to US$72.46 a barrel, with Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) down 2.9 per cent to $27.43 and Santos Limited (ASX: STO) losing 2.8 per cent to $7.04. Materials also weakened as gold slipped below US$4,000 an ounce, pushing Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) down 3.1 per cent to $134.37, Northern Star Resources Limited (ASX: NST) down 3.3 per cent to $19.92 and BHP Group Limited (ASX: BHP) down 1.7 per cent to $58.52. Stronger-than-expected labour data, including 40,300 new jobs and a fall in unemployment to 4.4 per cent, added to expectations that the Reserve Bank of Australia could lift interest rates.

Judo sell-off deepens as investors favour defensive stocks
Financial stocks weakened after the jobs data, with Judo Capital Holdings Limited (ASX: JDO) plunging 40.4 per cent to 91.5 cents after a profit downgrade driven by higher bad loans and rising risk-management costs. National Australia Bank Limited (ASX: NAB) dropped 3.4 per cent to $37.45, while Westpac Banking Corporation (ASX: WBC), ANZ Group Holdings Limited (ASX: ANZ) and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) each fell between 1 per cent and 2 per cent. Defensive stocks were firmer, led by CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH), Coles Group Limited (ASX: COL) and Woolworths Group Limited (ASX: WOW). Elsewhere, Worley Limited (ASX: WOR) fell 9.7 per cent after another profit warning, EchoIQ Limited (ASX: EIQ) surged 30.2 per cent on a proposed strategic investment and US commercial partnership with Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME), Tourism Holdings Limited (ASX: THL) rose 7.7 per cent on a fresh takeover approach, and The a2 Milk Company Limited (ASX: A2M) gained 3.7 per cent after declaring a special dividend.

US tech weakness offsets semiconductor strength
United States equities were mixed, with the S&P 500 Index (INDEXSP: SPX) flat, the Nasdaq-100 Index (NASDAQ: NDX) down 0.5 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX: DJI) up 0.1 per cent as investors reassessed mega-cap technology exposure. Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) rallied more than 15 per cent after stronger earnings and upbeat revenue guidance, while Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) rose nearly 4 per cent after lifting its non-handset revenue outlook. Losses across NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA), Oracle Corporation (NYSE: ORCL), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) weighed on sentiment, while Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) fell 6.1 per cent after increasing prices on MacBook and iPad products due to higher component costs. Stronger US growth data and in-line inflation figures slightly reduced expectations for further Federal Reserve tightening.