Australia shares close higher as banks, consumer stocks rise
Australian shares ended higher on Thursday, bolstered by gains in financials and consumer stocks on hopes of a central bank interest rate cut next week.
The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.2% to 8,297.50 at the close of trade, rising for the seventh straight session.
Data released during the session showed continued resilience in the labour market, bolstering expectations that the Reserve Bank of Australia will move to ease rates in its upcoming meeting.
While markets expect the RBA to cut rates by 25 basis points on May 20, investors have been scaling back expectations on rate cuts and now see around 74 basis points of easing by year-end compared with more than 100 basis points a couple of weeks ago.
The banking sector rose 1.1%, hovering near a level last hit on May 2.
Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG Australia, sees limited upside for banks in the near term as the sector continues to battle questions around margin compression.
Local agribusiness Graincorp ended 8.8% higher after its interim earnings beat market estimates and the company upgraded its outlook and extended a share buyback. It was the top gainer on the benchmark index.
Shares of Insurance Australia Group rose 5.7% after it announced an $869 million deal to acquire RAC's insurance business in Western Australia.
Consumer discretionary names including Aristocrat Leisure and Adairs logged advances of 1.9% and 0.8%, respectively.
Tech stocks extended their winning streak to a sixth session, led by Xero, which jumped 5% on strong earnings. WiseTech, DroneShield, and Appen all ended higher.
The gains were capped by a pullback in mining stocks as iron ore prices retreated.
Energy stocks also declined, with Woodside and Santos down 1.7% and 0.5%, respectively, on speculation around renewed nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.8% to end at 12,880.82.
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