Aussie shares open lower

The Australian share market opened lower on Wednesday.

At 10:10 a.m. local time (AEST), the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 41.24 points, or 0.77 percent, at 5,312.6, while the broader All Ordinaries index was down 39.39 points, or 0.73 percent, at 5,375.6.

IG market analyst Angus Nicholson said in a note on Wednesday Australian banks' American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) had a good session overnight.

"Any hope that the ASX will manage to hold onto yesterday's gains will largely rest with them," Nicholson noted.

"Given the move in commodity prices, the materials and energy sectors are set for a difficult session."

At the open, ANZ was down 0.34 percent, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia lost 0.83 percent, the National Australia Bank was down 0.87 percent, and Westpac fell 1.57 percent.

Rio Tinto opened 4.04 percent lower, while BHP Billiton was down 5.74 percent.

Woodside was down 1.5 percent. Endit