The share market finished at 2.30pm in preparation for the Easter long weekend, closing 3% lower at the end of the day.
The All Ordinaries index fell 166 points to 5182.40.
The ASX 200 lost 161 points or 3.06% to 5127.50.
Australia’s third largest gold miner, Lihir Gold fell 44 cents to $3.60, while its takeover target Equigold added 33 cents or 7.6% to $4.63.
Big miners were also down, BHP Billiton losing $3.08 to $33.87, and Rio Tinto falling $9.70 to $116.29.
The big banks were mixed, with the Commonwealth Bank rewinding yesterday’s gains, closing 70 cents down to $39.30 and National Australia Bank 69 cents down to $29.11.
ANZ gained 29 cents to $22.98 and Westpac rose 10 cents to $24.10 and NAB added 22 cents to $27.49.
In New Zealand, the benchmark NZ50 finished 49 points or 1.4% down at 3418.
In New York, gold prices were US$937.50 as at 2.53pm AEDT.
