It's been another horrid day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) in a selloff trend that seems to be accelerating this week. Today's falls are the third day of drops in a row for the ASX 200 after the falls we saw on Tuesday and yesterday.
By the end of this Thursday's session, the index had tanked by 1.19%, which leaves the ASX 200 languishing at 7,171 points.
This dire day on the ASX 200 follows what was a pretty nasty night of trading up on Wall Street last night (our time).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) had another tumble, dropping 0.57%. The Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) fared even worse, sliding by a notable 1.06%.
But let's get back to the ASX and sift through the rubble of today's trading to find the best and worst performing ASX sectors.
Winners and losers
There was carnage on the markets this Thursday, with not one ASX sector recording a rise.
The worst place to be today was in ASX mining shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) experienced a disastrous 3.17% drop by the end of trading.
Energy shares didn't have it much better. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) also had an awful time today, cratering by a horrible 1.49%.
It was a little better for the rest of the ASX.
Next up were ASX gold stocks. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) ended up tumbling1.07% lower.
That was closely followed by healthcare shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) recorded a drop of 0.95%.
Financials were slightly more in favour, with the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) slipping by 0.44%
Consumer staples stocks had it better again, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) falling by 0.42%.
ASX tech stocks saw a mild drop as well. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) ended up losing 0.31%. Hot on its heels were utilities, with the S&P/ASX 20 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) closing down 0.24%.
The best place to be today was in real estate investment trusts (REITs). But even the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) couldn't escape the pessimism with its 0.13% drop.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Despite the decidedly negative experience that the ASX had this Thursday, we still got ten shares that eked out a gain.
The leader of this pack was lithium stock Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR). Liontown shares rose by an impressive 9.03% today to close at $3.02 each.
There was no fresh news out of Liontown today, but as we discussed this morning, Liontown's rise could be due to some speculation over the company's pending takeover offer.
Here's how the rest of today's top performers fared on the markets:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) | $3.02 | 9.03% |
| Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN) | $3.13 | 7.93% |
| Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX) | $11.47 | 3.8% |
| PEXA Group Ltd (ASX: PXA) | $11.28 | 2.17% |
| Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) | $1.64 | 1.55% |
| AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) | $1.265 | 1.20% |
| Viva Energy Group Ltd (ASX: VEA) | $3.10 | 0.98% |
| Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) | $3.57 | 0.85% |
| Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY) | $2.63 | 0.77% |
| Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) | $46.13 | 0.72% |
Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to let you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.
