Australian shares advanced on Monday, with financials and technology stocks leading gains, tracking a Wall Street rally in the previous session on positive US economic data, while domestic investors awaited the central bank’s rate decision.
The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.6% to 7,325.2 by 0018 GMT.
The benchmark shed 0.3% last week.
Wall Street rallied on Friday to end a volatile week, as US Treasury yields eased and economic data helped investors look past the growing likelihood that the Federal Reserve will have to keep its restrictive policy in place until late in the year.
Local investors are awaiting the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) monetary policy decision on Tuesday.
A Reuters poll found that RBA will hike its interest rate again by 25 basis points (bps) to 3.60%, followed by one more lift next quarter, taking the peak rate higher than previously thought.
Financial stocks gained 1.2%, with so called “big four” banks rising over 1% each.
Technology stocks tracked their Wall Street peers higher, gaining 2.5%, with ASX-listed shares of Block Inc and Xero jumping 5.2% and 4.2%, respectively.
Software solution provider WiseTech Global’s shares jumped as much as 3.1% to hit a record high. Energy stocks rose 0.2% on strong oil prices, with Woodside Energy gaining 0.3%.
Bucking the trend, heavyweight mining stocks dropped 0.9%, snapping a four-session rally.
Sector majors BHP Group and Rio Tinto shed 0.5% and 1.6%, respectively.
Gold stocks followed suit and retreated 0.4%.
Australian shares edge higher as miners and banks advance
Mineral explorer Core Lithium surged 11.5% and was among the top gainers on the benchmark index, after it upgraded the size of a resource tenement at its project in Northern Territory.
New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index advanced 0.4% to 11,908.95.
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