Feb 3 (Reuters) - Australian shares inched lower on Thursday after two straight sessions of gains, weighed down by technology stocks, while banking giant Westpac jumped after reporting first-quarter profit above estimates.
The S&P/ASX 200 index (.AXJO) fell 0.2% to 7,074.7 by 1225 GMT, after rising 1.7% in the previous two sessions.
Technology stocks (.AXIJ) fell 5.3%, extending losses for the year so far to more than 20%, weighed down by ASX-listed shares of Block Inc and Xero Ltd (XRO.AX). Block's Australian shares fell as much as 11.3%, tracking overnight losses in the company's U.S.-listed shares (SQ.N).
Wall Street sentiment turned sour in post-market trade. Meta Platforms Inc (FB.O) plunged more than 20% after the Facebook owner missed its earnings estimate.
Meanwhile, Westpac Banking Corp (WBC.AX) rose as much as 3.6% and was headed for its best session Since Sept. 30, after the lender beat estimates for first-quarter profit and made headway in cutting costs.
Financials (.AXFJ) were up 0.1% after declining as much as 1% in early trading.
Among other losers, gaming company Aristocrat Leisure (ALL.AX) dropped about 1% after its offer to buy Britain's Playtech Plc (PTEC.L) fell through.
Healthcare (.AXHJ) and energy stocks (.AXEJ) were down 1.4% and 0.7%, respectively.
However, mining stocks gained nearly 1%, benefiting from an uptick in copper and gold prices, with index heavyweights like Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO.AX) and global miner BHP Group Ltd (BHP.AX) rising 1.8% and 1.9% respectively.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index (.NZ50) rose 0.1%, or 10.6 points, to 12,300.24.
The country's prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, said there would be a phased reopening of its borders, which were closed for nearly two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. read more
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