At noon AEDT on Tuesday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 61.1 points, or 0.74 per cent, to 8,173.9, while the broader All Ordinaries had fallen 60 points, or 0.71 per cent, to 8,436.0.
The ASX will close early for the holiday, so with about two hours of trading left in 2024, the ASX200 was up 7.9 per cent since the start of the year, or 11.9 per cent including dividends.
That's slightly better than its performance last year, when it rose 7.8 per cent, but the ASX200 has lagged many of its overseas counterparts.
The S&P500 will return over 20 per cent in 2024 for a second straight year, while the MSCI World Index - which consists of mid- and large-cap companies from 23 developed countries around the world, including Australia - is up 17.4 per cent year-to-date.
But the ASX also suffered less severe losses in 2022 than other markets, dropping just 5.5 per cent, compared to a 19.5 per cent loss for the MSCI World Index.
For the fourth quarter, the ASX200 at midday was down 1.0 per cent.
It was also set to finish December down 2.9 per cent.
Life360 will be the year's biggest gainer among ASX200 components, with its shares having climbed 198.4 per cent in 2024.
On the flip side, lithium developer Liontown Resources was the year's biggest ASX200 loser. Its shares are down two-thirds from where they began the year.
For the broader All Ordinaries, Appen was the biggest gainer with a 333 per cent rise, while Bowen Coal was the biggest loser with a 92 per cent decline.
Aristocrat Leisure was the standout among the 20 companies in the ASX20, up 69.6 per cent, while Fortescue led losers with a 30 per cent drop.
Sectorwise, the ASX's tech sector was the best performer with a 49.2 per cent gain in 2024, while energy was the worst with a 19.1 per cent loss.
Financials gained 28.6 per cent while materials/mining lost 17.4 per cent.
On Tuesday, 10 of the ASX's 11 sectors were trading lower, with utilities slightly higher.
The consumer discretionary sector was the biggest loser, down 1.3 per cent as Wesfarmers retreated 1.6 per cent and JB Hi-Fi fell 2.5 per cent.
All of the big four banks were in the red, with ANZ down 0.9 per cent, CBA dropping 0.8 per cent, Westpac retreating 0.7 per cent and NAB dipping 0.6 per cent.
In the mining sector, BHP had fallen 1.0 per cent, Fortescue had dropped 1.2 per cent and Rio Tinto had slid 0.7 per cent.
The Australian dollar was buying 62.24 US cents, from 62.43 US cents at Monday's ASX close.
The Aussie has also had a rough year, having dropped 8.2 per cent. It was buying 68.11 US cents at the end of 2023.
IG analyst Tony Sycamore said the decline in the Aussie was largely the result of offshore factors, including Donald Trump's victory, and its fate in 2025 depended largely on how much the president-elect followed through on his policies.
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