Macquarie stock price falls, profit hit by weakness in commodity prices.

Macquarie Group Limited's stock price has plummeted significantly due to its profits falling short of expectations. Despite a rebound in its investment banking business, its key commodities and global markets division has shown weak performance. In Sydney trading, the stock fell as much as 5.3%, marking the largest intraday drop in seven months. A statement on Friday showed that in the six months ending September 30, net profits grew by 3% year-on-year, reaching 1.66 billion Australian dollars. This figure is below the average analyst expectation of 1.8 billion Australian dollars.