ASX 200 shares are off to a shaky start on Wednesday despite some positive economic indicators in recent days. At the time of writing, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is trading 0.47% lower at 6,638.20 points with some big names heading lower.
Why are ASX 200 shares trending lower?
Financials and health care shares are trading lower this morning with the major banks all dragging on the index’s performance.
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is down 0.4% to $82.89 while CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) shares have slumped 1.6% to $280.97.
These are two of the biggest names that have contributed to Wednesday’s losses. This is despite oil prices reaching a 10-month high.
What was the good economic indicator?
According to an article in the Australian Financial Review (AFR), the jobs market is entering the new year with some significant momentum.
An Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) Australian job advertisement series published on Tuesday showed a continued recovery in demand for Aussie workers. More than 159,000 vacant positions were advertised in December which was the highest in 18 months and 4.1% above pre-coronavirus levels in February 2020.
ASX 200 shares have slid this morning despite the positive leading indicator news from the ANZ survey. ANZ senior economist Catherine Birch was cautiously optimistic on the news, saying “we should see pretty solid employment gains in December and going into 2021.”
CommSec chief economist Craig James was quoted saying, “a healthier job market will support overall economic activity, confidence and spending.”
The latest ANZ job series survey could bode well for unemployment statistics due out later this month. That, in turn, could be good news for several ASX 200 shares as investors hope for the strong momentum seen in the fourth quarter of 2020 to continue into the new year.
Foolish takeaway
All eyes will be on the economic data due out in coming weeks to kickstart the new year. ASX 200 shares have had a soft start to the year with the index falling 0.7% since Monday.
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More reading
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Ken Hall has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
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