Australian shares have handed back early gains to end the session flat, as wary investors mulled fresh Middle East attacks and likely incoming interest rate hikes from two major central banks.
The S&P/ASX200 inched 8.7 points higher on Monday, up 0.1 per cent, to 8,749.9, as the broader All Ordinaries gained 3.7 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 8,923.9.
Easing metals prices weighed on local mining stocks, made worse by elevated crude prices amid attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf and a Houthi drone strike on a Saudi oil pipeline.
The basic materials sector lost 0.6 per cent and locked in a third straight session of losses, with BHP looming large as copper prices retreated.
Battery minerals and rare earths producers also suffered, while gold stocks were mixed despite the precious metal easing to $US4,331 ($A6,063), still under pressure after bond yields hit multi-year highs last week.
It is a huge week for central banking, with markets bracing for the US Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan to increase their funding and policy rates in the face of stubborn inflation and, in Japan's case, a soft yen.
Australia's heavyweight financials sector edged 0.4 per cent higher as Westpac, CommBank and ANZ improved, with solid gains also for QBE, Suncorp and AMP.
Investment giant Macquarie missed out, slipping into the red on reports its capital structure settings afforded it softer regulation than other banks.
The energy sector advanced 0.4 per cent as Woodside, Ampol and Viva rallied and Santos hit a four-year high on a stronger oil prices.
Coal producers and uranium stocks lost ground.
Health care stocks outperformed the other segments, soaring 1.5 per cent with help from a more than four per cent charge in Telix shares after a US regulator approval, along with decent runs for CSL and Cochlear.
Consumer staples also performed well, garnering an extra 0.6 per cent, while an early rebound in cyclicals had splattered to nothing by the market close.
Australia's IT sector trailed the rest, falling 1.1 per cent as Nasdaq futures pointed to a sharp drop for US tech stocks ahead, following calls from tech leaders to slow down the artificial intelligence race due to safety concerns.
In company news, REA Group will no longer require real estate agency clients list all their properties on realestate.com.au, easing competition watchdog concerns.
The Australian dollar is buying 71.37 US cents, down from 71.73 US cents on Friday at 5pm as bets narrowed on a US rate hike.
Markets have priced a Reserve Bank rate hike on September 29 at a roughly 75 per cent chance.
ON THE ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 rose 8.7 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 8,749.9.
* The broader All Ordinaries lifted by 3.7 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 8,923.9
One Australian dollar trades for:
* 71.37 US cents, from 71.73 US cents at 5pm AEST on Friday
* 110.10 Japanese yen, from 110.59 Japanese yen
* 61.78 euro cents, from 61.79 euro cents
* 52.91 British pence, from 53.04 pence
* 123.46 NZ cents, from 123.01 NZ cents
