Aussie market ends lower

The Australian market finished lower on Tuesday despite data showing a better than expected trade surplus for the month of February.

At the close of trade, the S&P/ASX 200 index was down 16.10 points or 0.27 percent at 5,856.60, while the broader All Ordinaries index slipped 13.90 points or 0.24 percent at 5,895.80.

"The banks held the market back today," Commsec market analyst Steven Daghlian told Xinhua.

"The better than expected trade data helped to lift the market slightly higher earlier in the day, however it failed to continue during the final hours of trade"

Also out Tuesday was The Reserve Bank of Australia's decision on interest rates.

"No big surprises in terms of rates, the Aussie market didn't move very much, however the Aussie dollar did, falling quite aggressively, as it looks like rates will be on hold for quite some time," Daghlian said.

The most significant moves of the day came from gold producers.

"There was a flight to safety following a terrorist attack in Russia which saw gold stocks rise sharply," Daghlian said.

The Commonwealth Bank fell 0.53 percent, National Australia Bank lost 0.93 percent, Westpac dropped 0.97 percent and ANZ finished lower at 0.44 percent.

Rio Tinto slipped 0.18 percent, BHP Billiton was down 0.33 percent, Fortescue lost 1.61 percent, while Newcrest surged 3.53 percent.

Woodside Petroleum added 0.37 percent, Santos slid 1.07 percent and Oil Search dipped 0.27 percent.

Wesfarmers dropped 0.71 percent, while rival Woolworths finished 0.23 percent higher.

Qantas shares rose 0.51 percent, Telstra fell 0.64 and CSL gained 0.21 percent. Endit