Australian shares end week in the red as tariff blitz dents sentiment

By Rajasik Mukherjee

April 11 (Reuters) - Australian shares closed lower on Friday, ending a turbulent week dominated by U.S.-China trade tensions, as tit-for-tat tariffs fuelled global uncertainty and dented market sentiment.

The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO ended 0.8% down at 7,646.5. The benchmark lost 0.3% for the week, its second consecutive weekly fall.

Investors weathered a tumultuous week after U.S. tariffs took effect, only to be abruptly paused by President Donald Trump, with China notably excluded from the reprieve.

The temporary reprieve sparked a sigh of relief on Thursday, but uncertainty surrounding trade policies soon crept in, eroding investor confidence.

"Trump's tariff pause relief rally stalled overnight as the reality set in that the imposts that remain in place still present a significant risk to global economic growth," said Kyle Rodda, senior financial markets analyst at Capital.com.

"The end of volatility won't come until there are deals struck, especially with China, and tariffs lowered," Rodda said.

Miners .AXMM, which are heavily exposed to China - Australia's top trading partner - recouped their early losses to trade flat. Shares of global miner BHP BHP.AX ended 2.2% lower.

Financials .AXFJ lost nearly 1%, with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX rising 0.3%, while the rest of the "Big Four" lenders lost between 1.6% and 2%.

Health stocks .AXHJ declined 2.7%, with shares of CSL CSL.AX down 3.4%. For the week, the sector lost nearly 4.2%, posting its worst week since mid-February.

"It is not ideal at the moment" to invest in health stocks, given many of them are exposed to the United States, said Philip Pepe, a senior analyst at Shaw and Partners.

Energy stocks .AXEJ tanked 1.8%, tracking a drop in global oil prices. Sector major Woodside Energy WDS.AX lost 2.4%.

The sector lost 4.3% for the week, falling for a second consecutive week.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 shed 1.5% to finish at 12,019.13 points.

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