Australia's share market has had its worst day since April, as a spike in long-dated bond yields had investors considering fixed income assets for better returns.
The S&P/ASX200 slumped 169.2 points, or 1.9 per cent, to 8,731.4, as the broader All Ordinaries fell 164.4 points, or 1.79 per cent, to 9,003.6, wiping more than $55 billion from the top-500's combined $2.9 trillion market cap.
All 11 local sectors closed in the red, with interest rate-sensitive financials (-3.0 per cent), IT stocks (-3.7 per cent) and real estate stocks (-2.6 per cent) leading the losses.
The Australian dollar is buying 65.13 US cents, down from 65.39 US cents on Tuesday at 5pm.