The local share market initially fell after oil prices collapsed for a second straight day — reaching their lowest value in 18 years — but shares clawed back losses through the afternoon session.

Key points: The ASX 200 fell more than 2 per cent in early trade but managed to end the session flat

The ASX 200 fell more than 2 per cent in early trade but managed to end the session flat The Australian dollar gained after preliminary figures showed retail sales surged last month

The Australian dollar gained after preliminary figures showed retail sales surged last month Brent crude futures plunged to an 18-year low, below $US20 a barrel

The ASX 200 index dropped 2.3 per cent within the first half hour of trade today but regained ground in the afternoon to finish flat at 5,221 points.

The All Ordinaries index lost just two points to end at 5,276 points.

The local share market is still in a bear market, having shed 27 per cent since of its value since late-February's record high.

"The market might be up 14 per cent in the past month and off the recent lows but I wouldn't let that trick you into a false sense of security," said RBC Capital Markets' head of equities Karen Jorritsma.

She warned that the "hard [economic] data is going to bite" in the next few months.

Energy was one of the worst-performing sectors of the session, dragged down by Oil Search (-3.6pc), Worley (-3.2pc) and Beach Energy (-3.9pc).

Some of the weakest stocks included Southern Cross Media (-8.3pc), Qantas (-6.4pc) and NRW Holdings (-6.3pc).

On the flip side, WiseTech Global (+16.8pc), Pinnacle Investment Management (+12.1pc) and Avita Medical (+9.3pc) were among the best performing stocks.

Dollar jumps on retail sales

The Australian dollar jumped after the release of preliminary retail sales figures, to be 0.8 per cent higher at around 63.3 US cents by 5:10pm (AEST).

The figures show the strongest monthly rise in retail turnover on record in March.

Retail sales surged 8.2 per cent last month, driven mainly by consumers hoarding groceries like toilet paper, rice and pasta.

But NAB economists have warned this result will probably be "quickly unwound" as panic buying subsides.

Nevertheless, retail stocks including Myer (+5.6pc), JB Hi-Fi (+3.8pc), Super Retail Group (+4.8pc), Kogan (+5.1pc) and Harvey Norman (+2.3pc) made gains.

'Way too optimistic'

Overnight another sharp sell-off on Wall Street brought its two-day losses to about 5 per cent.

The Dow Jones index closed 632 points (or 2.7pc) lower at 23,019 on Tuesday (local time). It has shed more than 1,200 points in the past two sessions.

The benchmark S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 3.1 and 3.5 per cent respectively, with all sectors in the red.

Since its lows in March, the S&P has climbed over 20 per cent, powered by trillions of dollars in stimulus.

But it remains nearly 20 per cent below its February record high due to fears of devastating economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Technically, this means the S&P is currently in bear and bull market territory.

"The bright spot is that people are becoming more realistic about what the future holds," Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Independent Advisor Alliance in North Carolina, said.

"The idea we would have a quick V-shaped recovery in the economy was way too optimistic.

"It's a wake-up call for companies to be more cautious with their cash flow and make plans for an extended downturn."

European markets fared even worse. London's FTSE and Frankfurt's DAX plunged by 3 and 4 per cent.

The global market sell-off coincides with another slump in oil prices.

Market snapshot at 7:50am (AEDT): ASX SPI futures -2.1pc at 5,090, ASX 200 (Tuesday's close) -2.5pc at 5,221

ASX SPI futures -2.1pc at 5,090, ASX 200 (Tuesday's close) -2.5pc at 5,221 AUD: 62.85 US cents, 51.08 British pence, 57.87 Euro cents, 67.74 Japanese yen, $NZ1.053

AUD: 62.85 US cents, 51.08 British pence, 57.87 Euro cents, 67.74 Japanese yen, $NZ1.053 US: Dow Jones -2.7pc at 23,019, S&P 500 -3.1pc at 2,737, Nasdaq -3.5pc at 8,263

US: Dow Jones -2.7pc at 23,019, S&P 500 -3.1pc at 2,737, Nasdaq -3.5pc at 8,263 Europe: UK (FTSE) -3pc at 5,641, Germany (DAX) -4pc at 10,250, Euro Stoxx 50 -4.1pc at 2,791

Europe: UK (FTSE) -3pc at 5,641, Germany (DAX) -4pc at 10,250, Euro Stoxx 50 -4.1pc at 2,791 Oil: WTI crude (June) -36pc at $US11.57, Brent crude (June) -23.8pc at $US19.50/barrel

Oil: WTI crude (June) -36pc at $US11.57, Brent crude (June) -23.8pc at $US19.50/barrel Spot gold -0.1pc at $US1,683.65/ounce

Spot gold -0.1pc at $US1,683.65/ounce Iron ore -3.5pc at $US84.37/tonne

No respite for oil markets

Brent crude futures plunged again overnight to $US19.79 per barrel — their lowest value in almost two decades.

The coronavirus pandemic has obliterated demand for fuel, with far fewer people working, driving and catching flights amid worldwide lockdowns.

There is also a global oversupply of oil and the United States is quickly running out of space to store the excess.

As a result, the price of US crude futures fell below $0 on Tuesday for the first time in history.

The May contract for WTI crude, which expires today, settled at the paltry sum of $US10.01 per barrel.

Yesterday, it traded as low as -$US40 per barrel, which meant sellers had to actually pay buyers to get rid of each barrel.

"It's one thing to have to keep lowering prices, but if you have to shut off wells because we're out of storage, that's a huge problem," Mr Zaccarelli said.

"It's massively expensive to do and undo."

He believes smaller oil companies will go out of business as a result.

Meanwhile, the most actively traded US futures (for oil to be delivered in June) briefly sank into single-digits before settling down 43.4 per cent at $US11.57 per barrel.