The Australian share market has dived to near two-year lows amid a global stock sell-off, with energy and mining stocks bleeding red while supermarket giant Coles floats as a stand alone entity.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 59 points, or 0.99 per cent, to 5615.8 at 1200 AEDT on Wednesday, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 1.09 per cent. The Aussie has also slipped further, buying 72.14 US cents from 72.76 cents on Tuesday, and more than a per cent down from the 73.32 cents reached at the weekend.

Plummeting oil prices - weakened by wider uncertainty in global equities - has decimated local energy stocks, with the sector dropping by more than three per cent early on. Beach Energy was down more than nine per cent, Origin and Santos were down more than three per cent, and Woodside Petroleum, Oil Search, and Soul Pattinson were all down.

Falling energy shares had also contributed to Wall Street's overnight slump, where trade tensions and a sell-off in technology stocks also caused havoc. Heavyweight materials stocks weighed significantly on Wednesday's morning as metal prices took another hit overnight, with BHP down 2.8 per cent to $31.765 and Rio Tinto down 2.6 per cent to $77.74. South 32 and BlueScope Steel were down 5.1 and 5.8 per cent respectively.

Health care was the only bright spot for the bourse after sector giant CSL jumped nearly two per cent to $179.09, and Sonic Healthcare lifted on a stronger earnings report. The big four banks were all down, with the losses led by NAB, which posted a 0.8 per cent drop to $23.71. Tech shares continued to fall, losing 2.8 per cent, and telco stocks were also lower.

Coles shares floated at $12.49 and had lifted more than 50 cents by lunch, while Wesfarmers was down 29.1 per cent to $31.36 without the supermarket in its stable. Meanwhile, troubled discount retailer The Reject Shop has received a $78 million takeover bid after it had slashed its profit guidance by 40 per cent in October. Its shares rose 15.2 per cent to $2.80.

Source | SBS / AAP