Australian shares jumped on Monday, after posting their first weekly loss in four, as gains in mining and financial stocks overshadowed mixed signals from Wall Street in the previous session. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.6% to 7,523.2 by 0116 GMT.
The benchmark closed 0.47% higher on Friday.
Mining stocks, which dropped over 1% last week, climbed as much as 1.1% to hit their highest in nearly a week. Global miner BHP Group rose 1.2%.
Among peers, Rio Tinto added 1.2% and Fortescue Metals Group gave up 1.1%. Gold stocks climbed 2% and hit a one-week high. Newcrest Mining, Australia’s largest listed gold miner, rose 1.4%.
Separately, Australian miner Western Areas agreed to a revised takeover offer from nickel-lithium miner IGO.
Australian shares slide on aggressive rate hike concerns
Shares of IGO and Western Areas rose 3.8% and 5.2%, respectively.
Financials rose 1%, lifted by gains in the “Big Four” banks. National Australia Bank and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group advanced 0.6% and 1.1%, respectively, while Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac Banking Corp added 1.3% and 0.9%.
Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday that the country will conduct a general election on May 21.
BlueScope Steel jumped 1.7% set for its best day in one week after signing an agreement to acquire Cornerstone Building Brand’s coil coatings business.
In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.4% to 12,017.9.
New Zealand’s central bank will likely opt for a modest 25 basis point interest rate hike on April 13 but is set to raise by slightly more this year as a whole than previously thought to head off rapidly-rising inflation, a Reuters poll of economists found.
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