Stocks in Australia experienced a decline after the Wednesday closing, with losses in the IT, Gold, and A-REITs sectors leading to lower share prices.

At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 recorded a 1.37% decrease.

Among the best performers on the S&P/ASX 200 during the session were Medibank Private Ltd (ASX:MPL), which rose by 1.68% or 0.06 points, closing at 3.63. Additionally, Pointsbet Holdings Ltd (ASX:PBH) gained 1.14% or 0.01 points, finishing at 0.89, and Qbe Insurance Group Ltd (ASX:QBE) increased by 1.02% or 0.15 points, reaching 14.84 in late trade.

Conversely, the worst performers of the session included Kogan.com Ltd (ASX:KGN), which experienced a 9.33% decline or 0.49 points, closing at 4.76. Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX:GOR) saw a decrease of 8.44% or 0.17 points, ending at 1.79, and Healius Ltd (ASX:HLS) dropped by 6.33% or 0.11 points, closing at 1.55.

Falling stocks surpassed advancing ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange, with 779 falling, 364 advancing, and 377 remaining unchanged.

The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, measuring the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, rose by 2.10% to 11.47, reaching a new 1-month high.

Gold Futures for February delivery experienced a 0.07% decline, or 1.40, closing at $2,072.00 per troy ounce. In other commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in February fell by 0.37% or 0.26, settling at $70.12 per barrel, while the March Brent oil contract decreased by 0.34% or 0.26, trading at $75.63 per barrel.

AUD/USD remained unchanged at 0.68%, while AUD/JPY increased by 0.10%, reaching 96.08.

The US Dollar Index Futures dropped by 0.09%, closing at 101.80.