Australian shares edged higher on Tuesday as China confirmed it was moving ahead on trade talks with the United States, though the benchmark index still held close to two-year lows plumbed in the previous session. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.4 percent or 23.4 points to finish the day at 5575.90, after Beijing said a road map was discussed with US officials for the next stage of trade talks between the world's top two economies. Shares in China, Australia's biggest trading partner, made modest gains on the news as markets looked for progress in resolving the bitter trade dispute.
The Australian benchmark had fallen 2.3 percent on Monday, as investors worried last week's arrest by Canadian officials of a senior executive of Chinese tech giant Huawei for extradition to the United States could inflame fresh tensions between Washington and Beijing. On the day, battered healthcare shares closed 1.6 percent higher to top index performers.
Mining majors BHP Group and Rio Tinto both rose around 1 percent. The Australian energy index slipped 0.3 percent, as most oil-related stocks continued to trade lower, even after global oil prices clawed back some of their losses towards the end of the day. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.2 percent to finish the session at 8680.98, bouncing back from Monday's losses.
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