Australian shares rose on Wednesday, boosted by technology stocks as Afterpay received an approval for its takeover, with a jump in resource-related shares on strong commodity prices offering support.
The S&P/ASX 200 index advanced nearly 1% to 7,390.1 by 2357 GMT, with gains seen across sectors.
Buy now, pay later darling Afterpay Ltd added 6.8% to eye its best day since Dec. 22 after saying its $29 billion buyout by payments firm Block Inc got a nod from the Bank of Spain, making the deal fully unconditional.
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That lifted other technology stocks, lifting the sub-index 2.5%.
Gold shares jumped over 2.7% in its best single-day jump since Dec. 17 after bullion prices climbed.
The gold index was one of the best performers on the benchmark.
Gold miners Northern Star Resources Ltd added 3.9%, while Evolution Mining Ltd climbed 4.4%.
Energy stocks rose as much as 2.2% to hit their highest level since Nov. 8, on the back of solid crude prices.
Miners also climbed, about 1.8%, and were on track for their fourth straight day of gains and a near five-month high. Robust iron ore and metal prices boosted the sector.
Global mining giants BHP group and Rio Tinto rose 1.7% and 1.2%, respectively.
Lithium miner Liontown Resources Ltd surged about 13% to be one of the top gainers on the benchmark after signing a supply deal with the battery unit of South Korea's LG Chem.
Banking and financial stocks were up 0.6%, with the "Big Four" banks gaining 0.6% to 0.7%.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index traded up 0.1% to 12,847.87 points, with payments platform Pushpay Holdings Ltd rising 4.1%.
In other markets, the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 1.4%, while the S&P 500 E-minis futures were largely muted.
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