SYDNEY — Australian shares fell for a third consecutive session Wednesday, with the S&P/ASX 200 down 58 points, or 0.66 percent, to 8,745.9 in early afternoon trading, as renewed weakness in semiconductor stocks worldwide and a fresh wave of selling in lithium and rare earths names weighed on the broader market.

Wednesday's decline followed a session on Wall Street in which chip stocks fell for a second straight day. The Nasdaq 100 dropped 1.8 percent overnight, while the S&P 500 lost 0.4 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 0.2 percent after trading as much as 0.44 percent higher earlier in the session, according to Market Index. SPI futures had pointed to a subdued opening for the ASX 200 on Wednesday, with the index initially expected to open just 3 points lower before a broader risk-off tone took hold as the local session progressed.

The pullback extends a rough stretch for Australian equities. The benchmark index closed Tuesday down 27.1 points, or 0.45 percent, at 8,803.9, as overnight U.S. military strikes near the Strait of Hormuz reignited Middle East tensions, pushing oil prices and bond yields higher and draining risk appetite from the market's most globally exposed sectors, according to Market Index's evening wrap. That followed a 13-point, or 0.2 percent, decline on Monday to 8,831, itself a retreat from a one-week high reached the previous Friday.

Wednesday's session has been dominated by continued turmoil in South Korea's chip sector, which has rippled through to related Australian stocks. South Korea's KOSPI index tumbled a further 4.9 percent Tuesday following a weak second-quarter earnings reaction from Samsung........

© International Business Times