The Australian share market is lower, pulled back by weakness among the major banks and the resources sector.
CMC Markets chief market analyst Ric Spooner says ongoing concern about the falling oil price because of oversupply is hurting the resources sector.
“It (the fall in the oil price) is reflecting a story of overcapacity,” Spooner said.
“It seems to be flowing through to the whole market and is rubbing off on the banks.”
Spooner also said the fact that a rally on US markets in the wake of good retail sales data had fizzled out suggested that the US market may be overvalued and due for a correction.
He said a third factor affecting the Australian market on Friday morning was the expected release later in the day of more economic data out of China.
Given the recent weak Chinese trade and inflation data in November, investors are cautious over what the latest economic figures might bring.
Among the major banks at 1025 AEDT, Westpac was down six cents at $32.18, ANZ had dropped 20 cents to $31.01, Commonwealth Bank had lost 33 cents to $81.86, and National Australia Bank had fallen eight cents to $32.01.
In the resources sector, global miner BHP Billiton retreated 41 cents to $28.59, Rio Tinto reversed 50 cents to $54.54, and Fortescue Metals dipped one cent to $2.46.
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Oil and gas supplier Woodside Petroleum was 27 cents higher at $34.46, and Santos was up 25 cents at $7.25.
Construction giant Leighton Holdings was four cents richer at $21.74 after it said it would sell its John Holland subsidiary to a Chinese firm for around $1.15 billion.
On Wall Street on Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lifted 63.19 points, or 0.36 per cent, to 17,596.34 points following an upbeat retail sales report, but the gains were limited by concerns over the rapid fall in oil prices.
