Australian shares inched up and hovered at a five-month high on Monday, led by sharp gains in heavyweight mining stocks, as China eased some of its strict COVID-19 rules, spurring hopes of a recovery in demand.

The S&P/ASX 200 index gained 0.3% to 7,181 by 2313 GMT, their highest level since June 7.

The index had ended 2.8% higher on Friday.

Investor sentiment has also improved dramatically after cooler-than-expected US inflation data last week sparked speculation that the Federal Reserve may now start easing off its aggressive tightening path.

In Sydney, miners gained as much as 4.5% after iron ore and other base metals’ prices soared on China easing some of its COVID-19 rules.

Fortescue Metals Group, BHP Group and Rio Tinto gained between 4.1% and 7.7%.

Fortescue was the second-best-performing stock on the benchmark.

Diversified mining services provider Perenti Ltd jumped 6.3% after the mining services provider upgraded its earnings outlook for fiscal 2023.

Energy stocks also rose 1.5% after oil prices rose on health authorities in China easing some of the country’s new COVID-19 curbs, raising hopes for improved demand.

Australian shares snap winning streak ahead on US inflation data

Woodside Energy rose 1.3%, while Santos Ltd rose 0.7%. Financials index was down 1.5%, with all the “Big Four” banks losing between 0.7% and 1.2%.

Tech stocks were up 0.3%, tracking Wall Street gains, with ASX-listed shares of Block Inc up as much as 3.9%.

Elders Ltd, on the other hand, fell as much as 12.7% to become the worst-performing stock on the benchmark after the agribusiness firm flagged concerns about reaching full harvest potential for summer and winter crops due to extreme rainfall in the eastern states.

In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was largely unchanged at 11,314.27.