The S&P/ASX200 fell 11.7 points on Wednesday, down 0.13 per cent to 8,802 as the All Ordinaries fell 27 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 9,071.2.
The top-200 had tumbled almost 80 points to six-week lows, but buyers stepped in to stem the losses in the afternoon.
A barrage of factors were behind the downswing, which echoed at higher magnitudes in indices from Wall Street to Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's KOSPI index, IG Markets analyst Tony Sycamore said.
"It's been a perfect storm, a series of catalysts," Mr Sycamore told AAP.
Local economic concerns, uncertainty about future US rate cuts, equities' unrelenting rally since April's Liberation Day tariff announcements and worries about US tech valuations had all played parts in finally breaking the wave of buying.
"A lot of things have hit the market this week, but just at this point of time there's a little bit of a rebound creeping in," Mr Sycamore said.
Five of 11 local sectors ended the day higher but sell-offs in raw materials (-1.1 per cent), IT (-2.7 per cent) and real estate (-1.2 per cent) outweighed modest gains in financials, communications and utilities.
Large-cap miners were heavy as iron ore futures consolidated around $US104 a tonne, slipping amid concerns China's Simandou iron ore mine in Guinea could disrupt global supply.
Gold stocks were broadly lower despite an afternoon bounce in the precious metal's price. Spot gold is trading hands at $US3,968 ($A6,110) an ounce.
Rare earths and critical minerals producers continued to tumble from their 2025 run-ups with Lynas, Iluka and Pilbara Minerals each handing back more than 3.3 per cent.
Commonwealth Bank and NAB forged an upward path for financials (+0.6 per cent) as ANZ ended flat and Westpac eased from recent strength.
NAB and investment giant Macquarie will hand down financial results for the recent half on Thursday.
Energy stocks edged lower on Wednesday despite a benign uptick in oil prices as investors took profits on uranium stocks.Â
Paladin Energy (-8.9 per cent) was the second-worst performer of the top-200, behind Megaport (-9.7 per cent), as many of 2025's momentum plays encountered significant gravity.
Military tech company Droneshield tanked 7.5 per cent after announcing it had vested $44 million in performance options to employees.
The story was similar for IT stocks as Life360, NextDC and Codan all tumbled more than four per cent.
Cryptocurrency Bitcoin is teetering on the edge of a bear market, dipping more than 20 per cent from October's all-time high above $US126,000 ($A194,193).
"Bitcoin's plunge below the $US100,000 mark isn't just a price dip, it's a signal that the market may be entering a new phase," BTC Markets crypto analyst Rachael Lucas said.
The Australian dollar is buying 64.90 US cents, down from 65.28 US cents on Tuesday afternoon, as safe-haven buying bolstered the greenback.
Looking ahead, Seven West Media will hold its annual meeting on Thursday, followed by Qantas and Nine on Friday.
ON THE ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 dropped 11.7 points, or 0.13 per cent, to 8,802
* The broader All Ordinaries fell 27 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 9,071.2
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar trades for:
* 64.90 US cents, from 65.28 US cents at 5pm on Tuesday
* 99.63 Japanese yen, from 100.38 Japanese yen
* 56.47 euro cents, from 56.70 euro cents
* 49.84 British pence, from 49.74 British pence
* 114.82 NZ cents, from 114.74 NZ cents
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