ASX 200 report:
18 June 2026

The Australia 200 trades  38 points (-0.43%) lower at 8928 as of 3.45pm AEST.

ASX 200 retreats as Fed surprise hits global markets

The ASX 200 is on track to snap a four-day winning streak after this morning’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting delivered a hawkish surprise, triggering a sell-off in stocks and a sharp rally in United States (US) yields and the US dollar.

While US S&P 500 futures have gained 0.63% during today’s session, clawing back roughly half of last night’s 1.25% drop on news that the US and Iran signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) two days earlier than expected, the local market has struggled to swim against the tide of higher global yields.

US interest rates markets are now fully pricing in a Federal Reserve (Fed) hike by October 2026 and two hikes by the first quarter of 2027. It is worth noting that at the end of February, the US rates market was expecting two Fed rate cuts before year-end, a dramatic shift in just a few months.

ASX 200 stocks

Consumer discretionary sector

Providing some support, the defensive consumer staples sector lifted after the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to hold rates earlier this week.

• Coles Group added 1.12% to $23.38
• Woolworths Group lifted 0.74% to $38.06
• A2 Milk Company jumped a further 2.25% to $6.15, building on last Friday’s strong 10% gain.

Energy sector

Energy stocks were softer as West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil fell 2.10% overnight to $75.01, locking in a fifth straight session of declines. It has fallen another 1.50% in today’s session in Asia to just below $74 a barrel.

• Amplitude Energy dropped 3.09% to $1.41
• Santos eased 1.02% to $7.28
• Woodside Energy declined 0.66% to $28.77.

Materials sector

The hawkish FOMC outcome pushed gold 1.7% lower overnight to $4257, dragging local gold stocks down today:

• Ora Banda Mining fell 6.09% to $1.31
• Pantoro lost 5.57% to $2.89
• Westgold Resources slipped 3.87% to $5.22.

Copper plays also weakened as copper futures slipped 1.7% overnight:

• Capstone Copper lost 1.93% to $15.52
• Sandfire Resources fell 1.63% to $21.16.

The big iron ore miners came under pressure, feeling the pinch from a soft batch of Chinese data earlier this week, including a 35th straight month of falling home prices.

• Mineral Resources fell 2.13% to $70.42
• Rio Tinto slipped 2.11% to $182.91
• BHP Group retreated 0.61% to $65.20, easing from yesterday’s $65.98 record high.

Information technology sector

Technology stocks led the retreat as the higher yield environment weighed heavily on valuations, with some tax-loss selling adding to the pressure after the sector’s weak performance this financial year.

• WiseTech Global dropped 3.79% to $36.87
• Seek lost 3.44% to $13.46
• Xero dipped 3.69% to $71.87.

ASX 200 technical analysis

Following its retreat from the mid-April high of 9021.5, the ASX 200 then spent two months trading in a volatile range between 8810ish and 8490ish. Earlier this week, the index surged through the top of that range. Provided the break holds above support at 8800 – 8780 over the coming sessions, it clears the way for further gains towards the mid-April record high at 9021.5.

Be aware that if the ASX 200 retreats back through support at 8800 – 8780, it would warn the break higher has failed and raise the risk of a deeper pullback towards the lower end of the recent range.

ASX 200 daily candlestick chart

• _{Source: TradingView. The figures stated are as of 18 June 2026. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. This report does not contain and is not to be taken as containing any financial product advice or financial product recommendation.}