The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) endured yet another negative session this Thursday, in what is fast becoming a rather downbeat week for the share market. After opening lower this morning, the ASX 200 stayed in red territory all day, and ended up closing 0.23% lower. That leaves the index at 9,188.5 points.
This pessimistic session for the local markets came after a mixed night over on the American boards last night.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) couldn't quite hold water, dropping 0.04%.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) made hay, though, rising a confident 0.54%.
Time now to return to the Australian markets, though, for a look at what was happening amongst the different ASX sectors this Thursday.
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Winners and losers
As one would expect, there were more red sectors than green today.
Leading those red sectors were communications stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) was smashed, crashing down 2.3%.
Mining shares had a day to forget as well, with the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) tanking 0.71%.
Consumer discretionary stocks were on the nose too. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) took a 0.54% tumble this Thursday.
Gold stocks weren't providing any cover either, as evidenced by the All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD)'s 0.47% dive.
Energy shares were left out in the cold. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) saw its value decline 0.35% today.
Industrial stocks fared similarly, with the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ) sinking 0.26%.
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) were our last losers this Thursday. The S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) had slipped 0.15% by the end of the session.
With the red sectors out of the way now, let's turn to the green ones. Leading the pack were again utilities shares, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ)'s 2.78% surge.
Tech stocks were exempt from the selling too. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) jumped 0.85% this session.
Consumer staples shares were another safe haven, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) improving by 0.74%.
We could say the same for healthcare stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) banked a 0.17% advance this Thursday.
Finally, financial shares found themselves on the right side of the ledger, as you can see by the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ)'s 0.08% appreciation.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Today's index gold medallist was waste stock Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY). Cleanaway shares cleaned up this session, rocketing 15.19% higher to $2.73 a share.
This spike followed news that Cleanaway has been approached with a takeover offer of $3.13 a share.
Here's how the rest of the winners pulled up at the kerb:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Cleanaway Waste Management Ltd (ASX: CWY) | $2.73 | 15.19% |
| ASX Ltd (ASX: ASX) | $60.52 | 9.03% |
| Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) | $11.86 | 7.09% |
| Centuria Capital Group (ASX: CNI) | $1.58 | 6.04% |
| Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) | $21.68 | 4.94% |
| Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE) | $5.77 | 4.91% |
| ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) | $38.04 | 4.53% |
| Elevra Lithium Ltd (ASX: ELV) | $9.09 | 4.24% |
| IRESS Ltd (ASX: IRE) | $8.02 | 4.02% |
| Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN) | $19.81 | 3.28% |
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.
