Updates to close
Miners up over 1.5%
St Barbara shares jump 21.8%
New Hope up 5.1% after dividend beats expectations
By Roshan Thomas
Sept 16 - Australian shares ended higher on Tuesday, helped by gains in commodity stocks, while focus was on the U.S. central bank's policy decision and domestic economic data, which could influence the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) interest rate path.
The S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.3% higher at 8,877.70 points. The benchmark ended 0.1% lower on Monday.
The market remains largely directionless, caught between the end of earnings season and upcoming data releases, with investors now awaiting the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy decision and guidance on Wednesday and Australia’s unemployment data release on Thursday.
Craig Sidney, senior investment advisor at Shaw and Partners, sees the Fed's rate decision as the next catalyst for moves in the U.S. market, with a flow-on effect expected in Australian equities.
The unemployment data will be seen as pivotal for the RBA in gauging whether the anticipated softening in labour market conditions is beginning to materialise. The RBA meets later this month.
Anna Wu, Cross Asset Investment Specialist at VanEck Australia, expects the benchmark index to trade rangebound before the data on Thursday.
Miners led gains on the bourse on Tuesday, jumping 1.5%, as metals and iron ore prices surged.
Coal prices globally also rose, lifting Whitehaven Coal and Yancoal Australia , both added 1.9%.
Shares of thermal coal producer New Hope Corporation advanced 5.1% after the company a final dividend of 15 Australian cents per share, which beat market expectations.
Gold stocks were up 0.8% as bullion prices scaled a record peak. Shares of St Barbara jumped 21.8%, a day after the gold miner was an extension of the Simberi Mining Lease from the Papua New Guinea government.
Energy stocks advanced 0.9% as oil prices edged higher.
Further south, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index ended 0.2% higher to 13,234.89 points.
(Reporting by Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Eileen Soreng)
((Roshan.Thomas@thomsonreuters.com [Roshan.Thomas@thomsonreuters.com];))
