Another $4.6b wiped from sharemarket

AUSTRALIAN companies were today stripped of $4.6 billion after markets struggled to fight back from opening losses.

Local markets struggled back from an opening plummet when up to $9 billion was stripped from shares.

Traders were rattled by the Boston blast and news of a China slowdown.

The benchmark ASX200 eventually closed down 0.34 per cent, or 17.11 points, at 4950.8.

An afternoon resurgence ensured the loses were not as deep as occurred in the US overnight.

The US market suffered its biggest hit for the year, as the S&P 500 dropped 2.3 per cent.

IG Markets market strategist Stan Shamu said the poor news from China which drove down Australian shares on Monday were "compounded" by the Boston bombings which took place towards the end of US trade.

Mr Shamu said that uncertainty followed through to Australian markets in the morning but nerves were calmed by the afternoon.

"The ASX 200 has erased some of its earlier losses," he said.

"All things considered, Asian equities have actually done well to hold their ground."

Among the miners, BHP was down 16 cents to $32.15, Rio Tinto was down 11 cents to $54.98 and Fortescue was down 1 cent to $3.75.

The banks were mixed with the Commonwealth Bank down 37 cents to $68.14 and Westpac down 9 cents to $31.50.

But ANZ was up 7 cents to $28.86 and NAB was up 6 cents to $31.50.
 

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