SYDNEY, March 13, 2026, 08:33 AEDT
Macquarie Group shares closed 2.67% lower at A$195.75 on Thursday, extending a pullback in Australia’s leading investment bank as surging oil prices and fresh rate fears hit local financial stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 ended down 1.31% at 8,629.00. 1
The drop matters because it unwinds part of the optimism from just a month ago. Reuters reported the stock rose as much as 4% to A$221.32 on Feb. 10 after Macquarie said profit improved across all major units; Thursday’s close leaves the stock well below that level days before the Reserve Bank of Australia meets on March 17. 2
Macquarie Chief Executive Shemara Wikramanayake told investors in the February briefing that trading conditions were “satisfactory” in the December quarter. But by Wednesday, markets were pricing roughly a three-in-four chance that the RBA would lift the benchmark cash rate by a quarter point to 4.1% next week. 3
“We view the balance of probabilities has shifted,” Belinda Allen, head of Australian economics at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said, adding that CBA now expected hikes in March and May. “Our base case now is for a hike,” Deutsche Bank chief economist Phil O’Donaghoe said after shifting his call. 4
Thursday’s selling was broad. Australian financials fell 1.2% in morning trade, with Commonwealth Bank down 0.7% and ANZ nearly 2%, while Macquarie dropped as much as 2.3% before finishing the day down even more. Energy was the only major bright spot, rising 1.4% as crude strengthened. 5
Unlike Commonwealth Bank or ANZ, Macquarie straddles asset management, retail and business banking, commodities and global markets, and advisory. In its February briefing, the company said assets under management rose 3% to A$736.1 billion at Dec. 31, while home loans grew 7% and deposits 6%. 1
Macquarie also took a cautious tone. In that same briefing, it said inflation, interest rates, significant volatility and geopolitical events were among the factors that could shape its short-term outlook, even as it said its capital position remained comfortably above regulatory minimums. 3
The near-term call is not one-way. O’Donaghoe said a further escalation in the Middle East conflict could still prompt the RBA to pause, while Governor Michele Bullock has warned that a prolonged rise in global energy prices could hit demand and growth even as it pushes inflation higher. 4
Pressure on risk assets did not ease overnight. Wall Street’s three main indexes each fell more than 1.5% after Iranian strikes on two oil tankers sent crude toward $100 a barrel, pointing to another uneasy session when Sydney trading resumes on Friday. 6
For now, the next clear catalyst is the RBA decision. Macquarie finished Thursday down A$5.38 on the day, and investors will turn to the March 17 meeting and oil prices for direction. 1
