Little loss for ASX as miners offset falls

SYDNEY, AAP – Miners and energy providers have helped offset an otherwise negative Australian share market and the indices were little changed.

The market on Monday defied a negative US lead from Friday, although the ASX underperformed most Asian markets.

Materials shares, which include the miners, were the best performers and rose 1.36 per cent.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed down 6.2 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 7447.1 points.

The All Ordinaries index closed lower by 8.3 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 7766.1 points.

The Australian dollar was buying 71.93 US cents at 1620 AEDT, higher from 71.59 US cents at Friday’s close.