May 19 (Reuters) - Australian shares slipped on Monday, as losses in banks and miners offset strong performances by gold stocks, ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia's interest rate decision this week.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO was down 0.5% at 8,303.3, as of 0033 GMT. The benchmark index ended 0.6% higher on Friday.
The RBA is widely expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.85% on Tuesday, a Reuters poll showed, as easing inflation gives policymakers room to counter mounting global risks.
The central bank's outlook will be in sharp focus as investors scale back expectations for rate cuts, following a Sino-U.S. tariff truce and strong domestic jobs data that eased recession fears. Swaps now price in a 97.87% chance of a rate cut at the RBA's meeting. 0#AUDIRPR
Mining sector .AXMM shed 1% on the back of subdued iron ore prices. IRONORE/
Shares of BHP BHP.AX, Rio Tinto RIO.AX and Fortescue FMG.AX were down 1.4%, 1.1% and 1.5%, respectively.
The rate-sensitive financials sub-index .AXFJ was down 0.4%, with shares of National Australia Bank NAB.AX and Westpac WBC.AX each down 0.6%. ANZ ANZ.AX lost nearly 1%.
Energy stocks .AXEJ lost 0.7%.
Gold stocks .AXGD rose 1.5%, tracking gains in bullion prices. GOL/
Shares of Northern Star Resources NST.AX and Evolution Mining EVN.AX were up 1.6% and 1.8%, respectively.
In company news, New Hope Corporation NHC.AX lost 5.7% to emerge as one of the top laggards in the benchmark index.
The energy company posted a 27% drop in its quarterly underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization and trimmed its group saleable coal production and coal sales for fiscal year 2025.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell 0.8% to 12,683.19.
Globally, Japan's Nikkei .N225 was down 0.59%. The U.S. S&P 500 index .SPX closed up 0.7% on Friday, while Nasdaq .IXIC gained 0.52%.
(Reporting by Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
((Roshan.Thomas@thomsonreuters.com))
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