MELBOURNE: Australian shares rose 0.9 percent to a two-week closing high on Wednesday as markets across Asia jumped after positive economic data in the US sparked a rally on Wall Street.
Recent strength has pushed the Dow Jones industrial index above 13,000 while Asian bourses such as the Nikkei and the Hang Seng have risen to multi-month highs.
Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index added 39.6 points to 4,287.2, according to the latest data.
That was its highest since Feb. 29 but left the index still stuck below 4,300, a level that has largely capped trade since August.
"This is in sharp contrast to other global indices, which recently broke above some key levels. Such underperformance highlights the lack of confidence Australian investors have in the domestic economy," said Stan Shamu, strategist at IG Markets.
The Dow is up 7.9 percent so far this year while the Australian market is up 5.7 percent.
Data on Wednesday showed Australian consumer confidence fell sharply in March as households fretted about the outlook for employment and family finances.
Meanwhile, dwelling commencements, which show residential building levels, fell 6.9 percent in the fourth quarter, the third straight quarterly decline.
"Builders, building material suppliers and other residential construction-dependent businesses will experience weak conditions for at least the next six months," said Craig James, economist at Commsec.
New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index rose 0.8 percent to a nine-month closing high of 3,498.99, helped by the expectation that interest rates will be held at a record low for much of this year, and improving economic and earnings forecasts.
"We could very well see improvement in the local market throughout the year," said Grant Williamson, a partner at New Zealand brokerage Hamilton Hindin Greene.
"The markets do run very much on confidence and at the moment that's improved greatly. The international markets, in particular Wall Street, have been having a nice rally in recent times. That's bringing investors back into the local market and pushing the prices up," he said.
Australian miners gained after copper prices rose, with BHP Billiton up 1.3 percent and Rio Tinto up 1.5 percent.
Banks gained, sending ANZ Banking Group up 0.9 percent to A$22.30, its strongest in 10 months.
Alkane Resources rallied 11 percent and Arafura Resources 9.5 percent after the United States, Europe and Japan joined forces to challenge China's restrictions on exports of rare-earth metals.
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