The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) once again recorded a heavy loss for this Wednesday's trading session, entering official correction territory and further exacerbating the market sell-off we've been witnessing for the past month or so.
The ASX 200 quickly plunged upon market open and stayed in negative territory all day, closing with a 1.32% loss. That leaves the index at 7,786.2 points.
This horrid hump day for the Australian markets comes after a rough night up on the American markets this morning.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) was a horror show, dropping 1.14% lower.
Things were better on the Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) though, which only dipped by 0.18%.
But let's return to the ASX for a look at the performances of the different ASX sectors this session.
Winners and losers
There were only two green sectors in the market today.
But first, to the losers.
Consumer discretionary shares led today's selling. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) had plunged by a notable 2.02% by the close of trading.
Industrial stocks had a day to forget too, with the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ) slumping 1.88%.
Financial shares were in the firing line as well. The S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) tanked 1.6% this Wednesday.
Healthcare stocks weren't much better, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ)'s 1.22% dive.
Energy stocks gave up the gains we saw yesterday and more. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) retreated by a painful 1.19%.
Following energy, we had tech shares, with the S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) cratering 1.12% lower.
Mining stocks were right behind that. The S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) was crunched down 1.11% this session.
Consumer staples shares were in the same ballpark, as you'll see by the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ)'s 1.09% drop.
Communications shares fared better though. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) was walked back by 0.44% today.
Our final losers were real estate investment trusts (REITs), with the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) sliding 0.29% lower.
Turning to the winners now, it was gold shares that were the stars of the show. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) got a reprieve from the selling today, and added 0.34% to its total.
The other lucky escapee was the utilities sector, evidenced by the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ)'s 0.32% rise.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Coming out on top of the index tables today was nickel miner Nickel Industries Ltd (ASX: NIC). Nickel Industries shares swelled by a healthy 82.26% this session to finish at 65.5 cents a piece.
As we covered today, this move higher may have been a rebound after yesterday's big sell-off.
Here's a look at the other winners from today's trading:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Nickel Industries Ltd (ASX: NIC) | $0.655 | 8.26% |
| Coronado Global Resources Inc (ASX: CRN) | $0.545 | 5.83% |
| Johns Lyng Group Ltd (ASX: JLG) | $2.47 | 3.35% |
| Deep Yellow Ltd (ASX: DYL) | $0.97 | 3.19% |
| Viva Energy Group Ltd (ASX: VEA) | $1.64 | 3.15% |
| Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX: PDN) | $6.17 | 2.66% |
| Lifestyle Communities Ltd (ASX: LIC) | $7.72 | 2.52% |
| Alcoa Corporation (ASX: AAI) | $50.98 | 2.39% |
| AGL Energy Ltd (ASX: AGL) | $10.34 | 2.07% |
| Mesoblast Ltd (ASX: MSB) | $2.04 | 2.00% |
Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary that shows which companies made big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.
