Australian shares slid as oil prices surged after US President Donald Trump said the Iran ceasefire was effectively "over", with fresh US strikes on Iran raising fears the fragile truce could collapse and revive inflation pressures.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index was down by 75.60 points, or by 0.9 per cent, to 8709.50 at 10.10am AEST , with nine of the 11 sectors lower.
West Texas Intermediate rose 1.3 per cent to $US74.45 a barrel in Asian trading on Thursday, after posting its biggest daily gain in five weeks in the previous session.
A global bond sell-off deepened as oil prices climbed, as markets considered the impacts of fresh fighting on interest rates. Trump warned the US could hit Iran "hard" with fresh strikes, after declaring that he thought the ceasefire between the two countries was "over".
The US launched attacks on Tuesday and revoked a waiver that allowed Tehran to sell oil globally, a response to attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz that the administration blamed on the Islamic Republic.
Global X ETFs senior investment strategist Billy Leung said the collapse of the ceasefire remains one of the biggest wildcards for the global economy, and could result in markets repricing the RBA rate rise expectations.
"The biggest risk for Australia isn't necessarily weaker share markets, it's imported inflation. Any sustained disruption to oil supply or shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has the potential to push fuel and freight costs higher," he said.
"That creates another headache for the Reserve Bank. Imported cost pressures are largely outside the RBA's control. If energy prices remain elevated, it could delay the inflation outlook."
On the ASX, materials were the weakest as gold traded around $US4090 an ounce. Newmont dropped 1.8 per cent, Oba Banda Mining by 2.3 per cent and heavyweight BHP slid 1.5 per cent.
Financials retreated after Commonwealth Bank fell 1.1 per cent, while National Australia Bank eased 1.5 per cent, Westpac by 0.8 per cent and ANZ by 1.3 per cent.
Energy was the strongest sector as Woodside Energy leapt 1.4 per cent and Santos built on from its best day since March 2 on Wednesday to be up by 0.9 per cent.
Stocks in focus
Steadfast gained 0.2 per cent as it said takeover discussions with a consortium led by Amwins Group and Dragoneer Investment continue after the bidders reaffirmed their $7.7 billion takeover proposal.
Northern Star dropped 2.8 per cent as it has appointed former Perseus Mining chief executive Jeff Quartermaine as an independent non-executive director, adding further gold sector expertise to its board.
Catalyst Metals lost 1.1 per cent as it has secured gold price protection through forward contracts covering 30,000 ounces at a fixed price of $6075 an ounce as the miner seeks to manage volatility while retaining exposure to higher prices.
Fletcher Building soared 5.4 per cent after it upgraded its FY26 earnings before interest and tax guidance by about 6.4 per cent to between $NZ400 million ($329 million) and $NZ403 million, after stronger-than-expected property sales and improved volumes across its manufacturing and distribution businesses.

Sumber : AFR