Australian shares posted modest gains on Wednesday supported by bank stocks and miners, while New Zealand shares fell to their lowest in over a week as a2 Milk shares weighed. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.2 percent, or 9.2 points, to 6,107, adding to gains of 0.6 percent on Tuesday. BHP was the biggest boost to the index, advancing 1.4 percent as iron ore, oil and copper prices rose.
Westpac Banking's 0.7 percent rise followed. Whitehaven Coal was the best performer on the benchmark, surging 7 percent. On the ASX All Ordinaries index, department store chain Myer Holdings was among top two percentage gainers, up 16 percent, despite posting a fall in third-quarter sales. Shares of a2 Milk Company, listed on both Australia and New Zealand stock exchanges, were the biggest drags on both benchmark indexes, diving as much as 20 percent before closing 13.7 percent lower in New Zealand. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index closed 1.8 percent or 153.27 points lower at 8,555.51, in its biggest one-day drop since February. Fletcher Building's 1.1 percent fall also hurt the index.
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