Feb 2 (Reuters) - Australian shares rose on Thursday,
tracking Wall Street after the Federal Reserve raised its
interest rate by the expected 25 basis points, and as firmer
bullion prices lifted gold stocks.
The S&P/ASX 200 index had climbed 0.6% to 7,547.2 by
23:56 GMT after Wednesday's 0.3% gain, with most major
sub-indexes trading in positive territory.
The Fed said on Wednesday it had turned a key corner in the
fight against high inflation, but that "victory" would still
require its benchmark overnight interest rate to be increased
further and remain elevated at least through 2023.
Major Wall Street indexes closed higher overnight after the
Fed's rate decision and Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged that
inflation was starting to ease. In Australia, gold stocks were among the best
performers, rising more than 4% in their biggest intraday pct
jump in six weeks. Newcrest Mining and Northern Star
Resources added 4.4% and 4.6%, respectively.
Technology shares rose 2.6%. ASX-listed shares of
Block Inc gained 4.5%, while Xero jumped 6.7%.
Financials were up 0.4%, with the "big four" banks
rising between 0.1% and 0.6%.
Energy stocks plunged after oil prices fell
overnight. Sector majors Woodside and Santos dropped 1.2% each.
Among individual stocks, consumer finance firm Credit Corp was the top gainer on benchmark index, surging 10% to
its highest since Aug. 1, 2022.
Shares of Pinnacle Investment dropped as much as
7.1% to hit a more than one-month low after the company posted a
fall in half-yearly earnings.
Meanwhile, bourse operator ASX appointed Vicki Carter and
Luke Randell as non-executive directors in a board shake-up.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.5%
to 12,151.45.
(Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by
Subhranshu Sahu)
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