It was a rather depressing hump day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and many ASX shares this Wednesday. After yesterday's bounce back, the ASX 200 was back to red territory today, dropping by a hefty 0.67%. That leaves the index at 8,818.5 points.
This rather woeful mid-week session for the local markets follows a similarly downbeat night on Wall Street last night.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) had a rough one, dropping 0.27%.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) fared a little better though, slipping by just 0.066%.
But let's return to the Australian markets now and explore a little deeper what the broader market's falls meant for the various ASX sectors.
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Winners and losers
There were certainly more red sectors than green ones this Wednesday. Leading the former were gold stocks. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) was hit hard, plunging 1.79%.
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) were also punished by investors, with the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) tanking by 1.58%.
Consumer discretionary shares had a tough day as well. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) cratered by 1.05% today.
Mining stocks were also on the nose, evidenced by the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ)'s 0.94% slump.
Consumer staples shares were no safe haven. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) was cut by 0.78% this session.
Healthcare stocks had another not-so-nice day, with the S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) diving 0.69%.
Financial stocks had a similar experience. The S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) took a 0.66% hit today.
Next up were industrial shares, as you can see from the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ)'s 0.19% slide.
Communications stocks were our last losers this Wednesday. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) ended up slipping 0.11% lower.
Let's turn to the winners now. It was utilities shares that were at the front of the pack, with the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) jumping 0.83% today.
Energy stocks had another strong day, too. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) saw its value rise 0.52%.
Finally, tech shares round out the list, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ)'s 0.14% uptick.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Coming out at the head of the table this hump day was energy stock Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC). Whitehaven shares moved 5.21% higher today to close at $6.67 each.
This came despite no fresh news out of the company. Saying that, it was a good day for energy shares across the board, as we saw above.
Here's how the other top shares from today's trading pulled up:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) | $6.67 | 5.21% |
| Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) | $2.26 | 4.15% |
| Nuix Ltd (ASX: NXL) | $2.63 | 3.95% |
| Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) | $0.90 | 3.45% |
| Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) | $16.97 | 2.72% |
| Karooon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR) | $1.70 | 2.72% |
| Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL) | $5.54 | 2.40% |
| Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) | $1.22 | 2.09% |
| IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) | $4.79 | 1.91% |
| PEXA Group Ltd (ASX: PXA) | $16.53 | 1.79% |
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.
