The Australian share market has closed lower, pulled back by the resources sector.

Phillip Capital senior client adviser Michael Heffernan said general trading had been choppy.

“It’s been up and down, but it’s certainly a lot better than it was yesterday,” he said.

“It (trading) has been dominated by the resources sector which is getting battered.”

Mr Heffernan said a general weakness in commodity prices and China’s slowing economic growth had been curbing investors’ appetite for resources stocks.

In the resources sector, shares in iron ore miners were lower after an overnight fall in iron ore to just above $US50 per tonne.

BHP Billiton was down 77 cents at $25.50, and Rio Tinto was off 98 cents at $51.20.

Fortescue Metals slumped 10.5 cents, or six per cent, to $1.645.

Fortescue on Friday said it increased its iron ore shipments by 33 per cent in the 2014/15 financial year while cutting costs.

Gold miner Newcrest rose 31 cents to $11.84. Newcrest is expected to post its best earnings figures in years after lifting its profit margins thanks to lower production costs and a weaker Australian dollar.

Among the major banks, Westpac fell nine cents to $34.26, ANZ dumped 39 cents to $32.15, Commonwealth Bank dropped 33 cents to $86.30, and National Australia Bank weakened 18 cents to $34.10.

Investment bank Macquarie Group jumped 35 cents to $84.81 after improving its full year profit guidance.

Among other stocks, construction and contract mining giant CIMIC was up 40 cents at $23.76 after confirming its full year profit forecast.

KEY FACTS

* AT 1418 AEST on Thursday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 24.3 points, or 0.43 per cent, at 5,590.3 points.

* The broader All Ordinaries index was down 22.2 points, or 0.4 per cent, at 5,581.3 points.

* The September share price index futures contract was down 22 points at 5,530 points, with 19,996 contracts traded.

* National turnover was 1.34 billion securities worth $3.68 billion.