Australian shares edge lower in subdued start to week

Australia's share market has retreated from record highs, as investors await a catalyst to send the bourse into unchartered territory. The S&P/ASX200 fell six points on Monday, down 0.07 per cent, to 8,981.4, as the broader All Ordinaries eased 8.1 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 9,280. The top 200 nudged its best-ever close in the morning, but quickly faded as investors mulled thin order books due in part to delayed US economic data and bank holidays in China until Thursday. "We're just kind of looking for catalysts now to see if we can push to fresh record highs," Capital.com market analyst Kyle Rodda told AAP. "And that will probably have to come from offshore and depends on this US government shutdown and whether we get more data in the week ahead." Investors in the Brisbane Broncos didn't need to look far for their impetus after the team won the NRL grand final on Sunday, booting the organisation's value as much as 53 per cent higher in early trade. By the close, that gain had returned to earth somewhat with a thoroughly respectable boost of 26.9 per cent, adding $35 million to its former $129 million market cap. Four of 11 local sectors finished clearly higher on Monday, as gold, copper and oil price gains buoyed the raw materials, energy and utilities sectors. Gold hit a new all-time high of $US3,945 ($A5,976), driven by safe-haven demand and growing hopes of US interest rate cuts, lifting local gold producers. Copper prices rallied to above 16-month highs amid ongoing supply disruptions at major mines in Chile and Indonesia, supporting ASX-listed miners like Sandfire Resources, which surged four per cent to $15.54. Larger miners BHP and Rio Tinto capped the sector's gains, edging lower and tracking with a modest dip in iron ore prices. A rebound in oil prices lifted energy and utilities stocks, after OPEC+ crude oil production hikes announced on the weekend were smaller than expected, pushing crude higher. Australia's financial sector handed back its early gains to finish the day 0.1 per cent lower, with mixed performances from the big four banks on either side of break-even. IT stocks underperformed the bourse, tumbling 1.4 per cent as sector giants WiseTech and Xero sunk more than two per cent, tracking with a weak Friday performance from Wall Street's tech-heavy Nasdaq. Consumer facing stocks also sold off, with both staples and discretionaries shedding 0.5 per cent in broad segment slumps. Selling resumed in the health care sector, which dropped 0.9 per cent after closing out its first positive week of the previous seven on Friday. Defence technology Droneshield was back on top of the S&P/ASX200 leaderboard, flying more than 10 per cent higher to a record close of $6.29. At the other end of the table was Mesoblast, which handed back most of Friday's gains which followed news one of its medicines had been approved for rebates in the US. The Australian dollar is buying 66.05 US cents, up slightly from 65.98 US cents on Friday at 5pm. The Japanese yen has sold off against major currencies after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party elected Sanae Takaichi as leader, after she campaigned on debt-fuelled strategic spending and tax cuts. Japan's leading stock index, the Nikkei, was up five per cent by 5pm AEDT and on track for a record close, while Japanese bond yields also pushed higher. ON THE ASX: * The S&P/ASX200 fell six points, or 0.07 per cent, to 8,981.4 * The broader All Ordinaries lost 8.1 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 9,280 CURRENCY SNAPSHOT: One Australian dollar trades for: * 66.05 US cents, from 65.98 US cents on Friday * 99.24 Japanese yen, from 97.37 Japanese yen * 56.38 euro cents, from 56.29 euro cents * 49.12 British pence, from 49.11 British pence * 113.25 NZ cents, from 113.36 NZ cents