Last week the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) managed to edge slightly higher despite a broad market selloff on Friday which wiped out the majority of the gains that had been made during the first four trading days.
A number of shares acted as major drags on the index last week. Here's why these four shares were the worst performers on the ASX 200:
The Syrah Resources Ltd (ASX: SYR) share price continued its slide and fell a further 13.5% last week. This latest decline left it trading at a multi-year low and means the graphite miner's shares have lost 65% of their value over the last 12 months. Syrah's shares have come under significant selling pressure since its quarterly update revealed lower than expected prices for its graphite and higher than expected operating costs.
The Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE) share price tumbled 10% last week after a number of lithium producers were sold off. Investors appear concerned by the impact that increasing supply and lower demand is having on prices. Last month Orocobre released its half year results and warned of further weakness in lithium prices. In the first half the company commanded an average price received of US$12,295 per tonne, whereas in the March quarter it expects just US$9,000 per tonne.
The Ardent Leisure Ltd (ASX: ALG) share price wasn't far behind with a decline of 8% last week. This decline appears to be due to profit taking from some investors after the struggling entertainment company's shares rallied strongly in February. During the month the Ardent Leisure share price rose an impressive 20%.
The Eclipx Group Ltd (ASX: ECX) share price dropped 7.5% last week despite there being no news out of the fleet management company. This latest decline means its shares have lost almost a third of their value over the last six weeks. The main catalyst for this was a weak first half result last month which was caused by a softer Consumer market and continued softness in Insolvency/Industrial auction market conditions.
