S&P/ASX 200 closes lower as Australian shares slip, oil price surge triggers inflation fears; check top gainers and losers

Australian Sharemarket: As oil prices continue to surge amid Middle East conflict which began after Israel's and the US' joint strikes on Iran, Australian shares dropped on Thursday (March 12, 2026) following a brief two-session recovery. The prevailing tensions in the Middle East heightened inflation concerns, dampening risk appetite and boosting expectations for a rate hike next week.

The S&P/ASX 200 closed lower Thursday, dropping 114.50 points or 1.31% to 8,629.00. According to the ASX website, the bottom-performing stocks in this index were IPERIONX LIMITED and CATAPULT SPORTS LTD, down 14.29% and 7.80%, respectively. The index has lost 3.48% for the last five days but is virtually unchanged over the last year to date.

Oil prices climbed sharply as supplies ‌from the ⁠Gulf remained constrained ⁠following ship attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint for global crude trade.


As a result, markets have increased their expectations of an interest rate hike from the Reserve Bank of Australia next week, with the central bank likely to address rising cost-of-living pressures driven by higher fuel costs.

Markets quickly lifted the probability of a hike next week to ⁠around 78%, ‌from under 30% early this week, with a further move fully priced by August.

ASX 200: Top gainers and losers

On the S&P/ASX 200, several companies recorded notable gains. Yancoal Australia Limited (YAL) led the top performers, with its last price at $7.710, rising $0.730 or 10.458%. It was followed by Whitehaven Coal Limited WHC), which closed at $9.290, up $0.580 or 6.659%. Karoon Energy Ltd (KAR) also recorded gains, finishing at $1.980, increasing $0.090 or 4.761%.

Meanwhile, Viva Energy Group Limited (VEA) ended the session at $2.070, up $0.089 or 4.513%. Alcoa Corporation (AAI) also featured among the top gainers, with a last price of $90.570, rising $3.840 or 4.427%. On the losing side, IperionX Limited (IPX) recorded the steepest decline, with its last price at $6.120, falling $1.020 or 14.286%. SiteMinder Limited (SDR) also dropped, closing at $3.160, down $0.280 or 8.140%.

Catapult Sports Ltd (CAT) ended at $3.430, declining $0.290 or 7.796%. Similarly, Temple & Webster Group Ltd (TPW) recorded a last price of $6.830, down $0.570 or 7.703%. Lovisa Holdings Limited (LOV) also posted losses, finishing at $20.790, falling $1.570 or 7.022%.

S&P/ASX 200: Top-performing sectors

Sectors ended mixed. 10 of 11 sectors were lower along with the S&P/ASX 200 Index, according to the ASX website. Energy was the best-performing sector, gaining +2.08% and +1.35% for the past five days.

Australian financials lost 1.2%, dragged by ⁠top lender Commonwealth Bank of Australia's 0.7% fall, while ANZ fell nearly 2%. Shares of leading investment bank Macquarie Group fell as much as 2.3%. Miners lost 1.7%, pressured by BHP's and Fortescue's 1.4% and 1.8% plunges, respectively.

The sub-index was weighed down further by the Australian gold sector, down 2.2%, with Pantoro Gold and Evolution Mining falling 4.5% and 2.1%, respectively. Gold stocks, once ASX favourites after more than ‌doubling last year, have erased most of their gains this year as the US dollar strengthened during the Middle East conflict.

Real estate stocks fell 2.5%, ⁠weighed down by data centre landlord Goodman Group, which dropped 3.6%. Healthcare stocks slipped 1.3%. Technology stocks declined 3.6%, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street, with software firm WiseTech Global tumbling 4.6%.

Energy stocks rose 1.4%, bucking the broader market trend as oil prices strengthened. The sector has gained 22.8% so far this year after lagging the benchmark's performance over the past three years.