The Australian sharemarket fell sharply on Friday as mining giants and energy stocks dragged on the local bourse, capping off a poor week for global equity markets, as investor confidence continues to be tested.

The ASX dropped 136.2 points, or 1.6 per cent, to 8,416.50, with nine of the market’s 11 sectors falling. The materials sector was the biggest weight on the index, as mining giants declined after a report that tensions between BHP and China had flared up again as the two sides negotiate iron ore exports.

Global giant BHP (down 3.2 per cent), Rio Tinto (down 3.2 per cent) and Fortescue (down 5.5 per cent) all tumbled, while gold miners including Northern Star (down 4 per cent) Evolution Mining (down 4.5 per cent) also fell heavily.

Amid ongoing talks over iron ore exports, China’

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