(Reuters) - Australian shares' winning run petered out on Tuesday after an initial jump as banks dragged, though offsetting gains in materials stocks curbed losses on the index.
The S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> fell 0.4 percent or 27.9 points to 6,258.1 at the close of trade. The benchmark added 0.2 percent on Monday.
Banks led Tuesday's declines on the main index, reversing its sharp gains in the last three sessions. The Australian financial index <.AXFJ> dipped 1 percent, its biggest fall in more than two weeks.
Top lender Commonwealth Bank of Australia <CBA.AX> dropped 2.2 percent, and was the biggest drag on the benchmark, while Westpac Banking Corp <WBC.AX> slid 1 percent.
Consumer stocks were also negative, with retailer Wesfarmers Ltd <WES.AX> dipping 1.3 percent. Treasury Wine Estates <TWE.AX>, the world's biggest listed winemaker, slid 2.4 percent.
But higher base metal and iron ore prices boosted materials stocks, braking the benchmark's slide.
Index heavyweight BHP <BHP.AX> firmed 1.1 percent to a near two-month high, while Rio Tinto Ltd <RIO.AX> rose 0.9 percent.
Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index <.NZ50> fell 0.4 percent or 38.72 points to finish the session at 9,022.93.
Utilities and telecommunications stocks set the bearish tone, with Spark New Zealand Ltd <SPK.NZ> falling 1.7 percent while Meridian Energy Ltd <MEL.NZ> slipping 0.9 percent.
(Reporting by Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Editing by Eric Meijer)
