It turned out to be another miserable trading session this hump day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and most ASX shares. By the close of Wednesday's trading, the ASX 200 had lost 0.66%, leaving the index at 7,608.4 points.
This woeful ASX Wednesday comes after another red night for US shares up on Wall Street last night (our time).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) had a fairly miserable time, shedding 0.17% of its value.
It was even worse for the Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC), which was chopped down by 0.92%.
Time to return to the local markets though, so let's see how the different ASX sectors navigated today's trading.
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Winners and losers
Leading today's losses were consumer staples shares. Spurred on by Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)'s epic selloff, the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) tanked by a horrid 4.25% this Wednesday.
Mining stocks also had a rough time. The S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) had an awful day, cratering by another 1.41%.
Communications shares were on the nose too. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) ended up retreating by 1.08%.
Financial stocks only fared slightly better. The S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) sank by 0.72% by the closing bell.
Gold shares couldn't hold the fort either, evidenced by the All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD)'s loss of 0.61%.
Industrials stocks were yet another sore spot. The S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ) gave up 0.39% of its value today.
That was closely followed by the energy sector. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) ended up shrinking by 0.35%.
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) were our final losers. The S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) slipped by 0.06% by the time the markets closed.
Turning now to the winners, it was tech shares that shone the brightest during today's trading. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) had a great time, surging 2.23% higher.
Utilities stocks were also in demand, as you can see from the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ)'s gain of 1.27%.
ASX healthcare shares lived up to their name today as well, with the S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) bouncing 0.65% higher.
Finally, consumer discretionary stocks did far better than their consumer staples counterparts, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) lifting 0.28%.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Today's winner came in at building construction materials company CSR Ltd (ASX: CSR). CSR shares rocketed a huge 17.43% up to $7.95 each before being halted this afternoon. There was no official news from the company aside from that, but there are takeover rumours swirling around.
Here's how the rest of today's winners turned out:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| CSR Ltd (ASX: CSR) |
$7.95 | 17.43% |
| Strike Energy Ltd (ASX: STX) | $0.24 | 11.63% |
| WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) | $88.75 | 11.15% |
| Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) | $0.064 | 8.47% |
| Iluka Resources Ltd (ASX: ILU) | $7.63 | 5.83% |
| Ventia Services Group Ltd (ASX: VNT) | $3.51 | 4.46% |
| Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH) | $341.07 | 3.26% |
| Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC) | $5.94 | 3.12% |
| Scentre Group (ASX: SCG) | $3.06 | 2.68% |
| Ansell Ltd (ASX: ANN) | $24.26 | 2.67% |
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.
