Healthcare stocks dragged the market lower, while shares in Coca-Cola Amatil took a hit, falling 6.4pc.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index and the broader All Ordinaries Index closed 0.4 and 0.5 per cent lower to 5408.5 points and 5489.1 points, respectively.

It was another day for Healthscope's horror run as its shares shed another 5.9 per cent on Monday, after plunging closer to 20 per cent on Friday.

"There's been a lot of talk recently about 'bond proxies' and that investors paying too much for income," said Kerry Craig, global market strategist at JP Morgan. "I think people are questioning that yield play."

"Healthcare stocks are the ones that have benefited more than anything else from that defensive play, and we're seeing a rotation out of that."

Resources stocks helped offset some losses with BHP Billiton enjoying a 0.3 per cent lift while Rio Tinto closed up 0.5 per cent. Bluescope Steel was the day's best performing top 200 company, jumping 4.8 per cent.

Oil prices slid during Monday's session after Iraq said it wanted to be exempt from the OPEC production cap deal, sending energy stocks south. Australia's largest oil producer, Woodside Petroleum, closed down 1 per cent.

Investors hesitated ahead of the bank reporting season, though there was a slight up-tick in buying just ahead of market's close. ANZ and Westpac finished the day 0.3 and 0.4 per cent higher, while Commonwealth Bank of Australia and National Australia Bank finished the day in the red.

"Everyone will be watching to see the effect of the housing market and whether there's a regulatory need for more capital building," said Mr Craig. "So there's a bit of nervousness ahead of the announcements, but I don't think anybody's written them off just yet."  NAB releases its full-year results on Thursday.

Shares in Australia's largest mortgage insurer lifted after China Oceanwide agreed to buy all the shares in New York-listed Genworth Financial, which is the 52 per cent shareholder of Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia. Investors appreciated the deal and sent the stock price up 2.7 per cent to close at $3.01.

Property names moved lower again as investors weighed up the changing macroeconomic environment and the potential for higher interest rates around the globe. 

Market movers

Santos

The oil and gas producer's share price fell 2.9 per cent on Monday after it announced it had agreed to sell its Victorian gas assets to Cooper Energy in a deal worth up to $82 million. Cooper Energy, whose shares were in a trading halt, is expected to quadruple its Australian production. The smaller producer said it will fund the acquisition partly through a 1-for-2 rights share offer in which it expects to raise $62.6 million. ​

Oil stalls

Oil prices stalled after hitting a 15-month high last week, with Brent crude futures trading at $US51.50 a barrel after easing 0.5 per cent during Asian trade on Monday. The pullback came after producer Iraq said it didn't want to be part of the OPEC deal to curtail supply. A rise in oil rigs in the US for the eighth straight week as measured by the Baker-Hughes rig count on Friday added to the pressure. The ASX energy sector ended the day 1.5 per cent lower. 

Japan exports

Japanese data delivered some modestly upbeat news, with imports and exports for September coming in much better than economists had expected. Exports fell 6.9 per cent compared with the 10.8 per cent fall predicted. It also represented an improvement on August's 9.6 per cent fall. Imports fell 16.3 per cent, improving on August's 17.3 per cent fall. A stubbornly strong currency and softening global demand are behind the contraction. The Nikkei traded 0.2 per cent higher in late trade. 

Currencies

The US dollar continued its push higher after touching a one-month high on Friday. The biggest loser against the greenback was the euro, sinking to its lowest point since March, and remaining under pressure through Asian trade. The Australian and New Zealand dollars continued to weaken against the greenback as US rate rise bets continued to strengthen. In late trade the Australian dollar was fetching US76.16¢.

Stock watch: Coca-Cola Amatil

Shares in the bottler tumbled 6.4 per cent on Monday after analysts pointed to risks to the company's earnings following its investor day on Friday.

Analysts for Deutsche Bank and Macquarie said separately while the proposition for maintaining its mid-to-single digit EPS growth was positive, there were complications to that outlook. Macquarie noted falling volumes in its sparkling drinks and a container deposit scheme as potential risks, while Deutsche Bank analyst Michael Simotas noted a 2-3 per cent rise in the cost of goods sold on higher sugar prices and currency, suggesting a retail price hike was a key risk.

Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to "hold" from "buy" on Friday following a solid run in the share price that preceded Monday's fall. Macquarie maintained its "underperform" rating and UBS reiterated its "neutral" call.