Australian shares open lower

Australian shares have opened lower on Wednesday, weighed by the banks, while BHP Billiton has risen from the commodity rout after posting a bumper production for the September quarter.

At the 10.15 a.m. (AEDT) official market opening, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 fell 25 points, or 0.48 percent to 5210.6 points, while the broader All Ordinaries declined 22.4 points, or 0.42 percent, to 5249.2 points.

Most of the selling on the local market is coming from Australia's financial sector, Bell Direct equities analyst Julia Lee said as investors continue to take stock of the government's plans to overhaul the financial system, coupled with some profit taking from a strong run.

Lee said the resources sector, however, has stood out amid drops in commodities overnight.

"They are performing better than expected and that's because of BHP's strong quarterly numbers," Lee said.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia fell 0.61 percent, the National Australia Bank slipped 0.91 percent, Westpac is down 0.97 percent while ANZ lost 0.88 percent.

Energy and Materials also weighed with Oil Search down 0.82 percent, Santos is 0.19 percent weaker while Woodside Petroleum slipped 0.62 percent.

Rio Tinto fell 0.48 percent however rival BHP Billiton strengthened 0.29 percent after releasing an upbeat first quarter production report.

Wesfarmers is down 0.91 percent and Woolworths is 0.3 percent weaker.

Qantas lost 1.02 percent while Telstra edged 0.09 percent higher. Endit