SYDNEY, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- The Australian share market ended in the red on Thursday, with deep losses across major sectors that brought it to its lowest level in 12 months.
At the close, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 stock index lost 164.9 points or 2.83 percent at 5,664.1, while the broader All Ordinaries index fell 167 points or 2.82 percent at 5,759.5.
By midday, the heavyweight financial, mining, energy and healthcare sectors already racked up 2 percent losses on the back of steep overnight declines on Wall Street, pointing to major selling amid the recent weakness of markets across the globe.
The big banks ended markedly lower, with ANZ falling 2.24 percent, Commonwealth Bank losing 1.97 percent, National Australia Bank shedding 2.19 percent and Westpac down 2.04 percent.
Mining giant BHP lost 3.76 percent and rival Rio Tinto fell 4.60 percent. Woodside Petroleum shed 1.95 percent. Gold miner Newcrest reflected some of the relief provided by the sector by closing up 0.75 percent.
Supermarket chain Woolworths dipped 0.72 percent while rival Wesfarmers lost 3.26 percent. National carrier Qantas fell 4.27 percent, telco Telstra dropped 2.55 percent and biomedical group CSL was down 3.76 percent.
