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Shortly before the market closed, the Australian government said it was inclined to reject the Singapore Exchange Ltd proposed $7.8 billion takeover bid for Australian stock-exchange operator ASX on national interest grounds.
That knocked shares in ASX down 3.3 percent to A$33.70, on heavy volume of 3.6 times an average day.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose 13.3 points to 4,900.1, according to latest available data.