Australian shares fell on Wednesday's close after President Trump revealed plans to impose 25% tariffs on automobile, semiconductor, and pharmaceutical imports.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 1.4% or 61.8 points to close at 8,419.2.

Investors were also cautious as officials from the US and Russia met for the first time to decide on a possible truce for the Ukraine war, Reuters reported.

Markets remain in a wait-and-see mode. Despite uncertainty over Trump's threats, emerging market sentiment stays positive, with investors holding riskier assets longer than anticipated, the report said.

Investors were also cautious as officials from the US and Russia met for the first time to decide on a possible truce for the Ukraine war, per the report.

On the domestic front, The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Leading Index, which shows the likely pace of economic activity relative to trend three to nine months into the future, rose to about 0.6% in January from 0.2% in December 2024.

Australian wages grew at their slowest pace towards the end of 2024 since records in 2022, with both private and public sectors driving the decline, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) signaled a "hawkish" stance on Tuesday as it raised caution over further easing following its first rate cut since 2020, ANZ Research said.

In company news, National Australia Bank (ASX:NAB) reported Wednesday unaudited cash earnings of AU$1.74 billion for the fiscal first quarter, down from AU$1.8 billion for the year-earlier period. Shares of the bank fell 8% at market close.

Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) swung to a loss of AU$4.1042 per diluted share in the fiscal first half-year, compared with earnings of AU$2.7844 per diluted share a year earlier. Shares fell 21% on market close and earlier hit a 52-week low.

Lastly, Goodman Group (ASX:GMG) is raising a total of AU$4.4 billion via a fully underwritten institutional placement and a non-underwritten security purchase plan.