Australia's share market has handed back an early improvement as the morning's optimism gave way to caution by the afternoon, ahead of key economic data due this week.
The S&P/ASX200 fell 29.1 points on Tuesday, down 0.33 per cent, to 8,787, as the broader All Ordinaries lost 42.9 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 8,988.3.
Australia's mining segment has dropped for seven of the past nine sessions, as global growth and inflation concerns weigh on the demand outlook for raw materials.
IT stocks have fallen sharply, after a weak lead from US tech after SpaceX shares ran into gravity, and as South Korea's technology and semiconductor-dominated KOSPI index slumped by more than seven per cent in two sessions, with traders weighing AI hype against dizzying technology valuations.
The Australian dollar is buying 69.64 US cents, down from 70.04 US cents on Monday at 5pm.