ASX edges lower as miners take breather

The local share market is edging lower this morning, with the mining sector slumping after a strong two-day rally.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index at noon AEDT on Tuesday was down 30.3 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 7116.

The broader All Ordinaries was 32.5 points lower at 7317.7, a 0.44 per cent drop.

The materials sector was down 2.2 per cent after a combined 7.2 per cent on Friday and Monday.

BHP and Rio Tinto had both fallen 1.5 per cent to $43.37 and $104.39 respectively while Fortescue Metals was down 2.0 per cent to $19.12 after soaring 10.1 per cent on Monday.

The big banks were mostly up however with CBA the biggest gainer, rising 1.3 per cent to $106.45 after announcing it made an unaudited cash profit of $2.5 billion in the September quarter.

Westpac was up 0.8 per cent to $24.04 and ANZ was basically flat at $24.275.

NAB, trading ex-dividend, was down 2.2 per cent to $30.57.

Back in the material sector, Incitec Pivot was up 8.2 per cent to $4.045 after the fertiliser and explosives company increased its dividend and announced a $400 million share buyback after making a record $1 billion profit in the 12 months to September 30.

In tech, Whispir soared 39.4 per cent to a three-week high of 69c after the communications platform announced it plans to reduce its workforce by 30 per cent, or 80 roles, to become cash-flow positive from the January quarter.

PDF software company Nitro Software was up 1.9 per cent to $2.10 after agreeing to be bought by Canadian software company Alludo for $2 per share.

AGL was down 0.6 per cent to $7.655 as its shareholders elected four candidates nominated by activist investor Mike Cannon-Brookes.

AGL chairwoman Patricia McKenzie, whose board had opposed three of the four new candidates, pledged to work “constructively with them in the best of interests of shareholders”.