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.
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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.
