Aust share market closes lower The Australian share market has lost ground as investors wait for direction from Europe and the US. Morgans client adviser Alistair McCorquodale said the local market had fallen steadily throughout the day with declines in most sectors. "It's been a fairly down day," Mr McCorquodale said. A bit of impetus has come out of the US market, which has taken a breather and been a little bit weaker since the new year. The US corporate earnings season gets underway this week while investors prepare for the release of overseas data. "The Australian market is just waiting for direction that will come through the European and US markets tonight," he said. We're just in a bit of a wait-and-see mode. Among the big miners, BHP Billiton lost 21 cents to $37.56, Rio Tinto dropped 61 cents to $67.75, and Fortescue Metals fell 11 cents to $5.71. Gold miner Newcrest was five cents poorer at $8.62. Among the major banks, Westpac eased 22 cents to $32.12, ANZ reversed 22 cents to $31.99, and National Australia Bank fell 14 cents to $34.55, but Commonwealth Bank gained two cents to $77.60. Property companies were some of the few stocks to finish higher, with Mirvac shares rising 1.5 cents to $1.72 and Stockland gaining 4.5 cents to $3.68. At 1615 AEDT on Monday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 25.2 points, or 0.47 per cent, at 5,324.9 points. The broader All Ordinaries index was down 24.1 points, or 0.45 per cent, at 5,327.7. The March share price index futures contract was down 12 points at 5,300, with 19,218 contracts traded. The price of gold in Sydney was $US1241.30 per fine ounce, up $US9.53 on Friday's closing price of $US1,231.77. National turnover was 1.2 billion securities worth $1.9 billion.