The Australian bourse has finished slightly lower, with bigger losses for smaller companies outweighing small gains for big firms.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index finished down 9.7 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 8,206.3 on Thursday, basically reversing Wednesday's gains.
The broader All Ordinaries dipped 22.4 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 8,453.9.
The ASX's 20 biggest firms collectively rose 0.3 per cent, while small cap stocks lost ground.
The Small Ordinaries, an index of the 200 companies in the ASX300, but not in the ASX200, dropped 0.8 per cent, as did the MidCap50.
Five of the ASX's 11 sectors finished lower on Thursday, while six finished higher.
Tech was the biggest mover, dropping 2.9 per cent as Wisetech Global slumped another 6.3 per cent, taking its loss since the start of the month to 27.6 per cent.
After the market closed, the logistics firm announced its founder and chief executive, Richard White, would step down with immediate effect following recent allegations into his conduct.
Two law firms had been appointed to investigate the specific issues raised, Wisetech said.
In the heavyweight mining sector, Fortescue slid 3.2 per cent to $19.13 following a first-quarter report that RBC Capital Markets analyst Kaan Peker said contained a minor pricing miss.
BHP dipped 0.4 per cent to $42.25 and Rio Tinto slipped 0.6 per cent to $117.78, while South32 gained 1.1 per cent to $3.69.
Goldminers were lower even as the precious metal changed hands for $US2,728 an ounce, near a record high.
Evolution fell 3.2 per cent, De Grey dipped 1.0 per cent and Newmont plunged 6.3 per cent as the goldmining giant revealed higher production costs in its third-quarter results.
In the financial sector, all of the big four banks gained ground.
ANZ rose 1.1 per cent to $31.71, CBA added 1.2 per cent to $143.43, NAB gained 0.7 per cent to $38.90 and Westpac climbed 0.3 per cent to $32.11.
IAG rose 0.5 per cent to $7.58 as the insurance giant's executives told its annual general meeting that the NRMA Insurance, CGU and WFI brand owner was on track to meet its financial targets and had few natural perils claims so far this year.
Adairs rose 11.6 per cent to $2.59 as the furniture retailer said sales at its flagship brand were up 16.1 per cent in the eight weeks since deployment of a new warehouse management system at its national distribution centre.
Strong product ranges had resonated well with customers and in-store stock levels had improved under the new system, Adairs said.
Reece fell 7.9 per cent to $24.45 after the plumbing supplier reported $2.2 billion in sales revenue for the first quarter, down five per cent from a year ago.
The ongoing softness in housing activity in both Reece's US, Australia and New Zealand regions were creating a challenging trading environment, the company said as it held its annual general meeting online.
The Australian dollar was buying 66.44 US cents, from 66.75 US cents at Wednesday's ASX close.
ON THE ASX:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index on Thursday dropped 9.7 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 8,206.3.
* The All Ordinaries dipped 22.4 points, or 0.26 per cent, at 8,453.9
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 66.44 US cents, from 66.75 US cents at Wednesday's ASX close
* 101.20 Japanese yen, from 101.60 yen
* 61.59 euro cents, from 61.77 euro cents
* 51.38 British pence, from 51.38 pence
* 110.46 NZ cents, from 110.57 NZ cents.
