ASX Round-Up: ASX Falls to 5,411.1 Points as Domestic Manufacturing Expands

The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) closed down 14.4 points, to 5,411.1 points, on November 1. The ASX hit a high of 5,425.9 points today and a low of 5,405.4 points, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

The market closed lower due to a number of factors. Domestic manufacturing activity expanded to a three-year high in October, and the HSBC China Purchasing Managers’ Index hit 50.9 last month, a jump from 50.2 in September, 123jump.com reported. The Australian Bureau of Statistics also reported that the Producer Price Index was up 1.3 percent for the last three months as domestic prices rose 0.8 percent and import prices increased nearly 6 percent.

Few companies experienced gains on the ASX today. Beach Energy (ASX:BPT) was one of those companies. The oil and gas exploration and production company rose 3.5 percent, or $0.05, to $1.48.

Most energy and mining companies saw losses on the ASX today. Australia-based mining company PanAust (ASX:PNA) experienced the biggest losses among energy companies, falling 5.45 percent, or $0.11, to $1.91.

Newcrest Mining (ASX:NCM), a gold, copper and silver producer operating in Australia, the Asia-Pacific region and West Africa, also fell. The company dropped $0.36, or 3.5 percent, to $9.93.