Australia, NZ shares rise on Europe stimulus hopes, commodities bounce

SYDNEY: Australian shares jumped 1.1 percent on Friday, nudging into positive territory for the week as hopes of more stimulus in Europe and rebounds in prices of iron ore and oil buoyed sentiment.

In its first two-day winning streak for the year, the S&P/ASX 200 index gained 52.0 points, or 1.1 percent, to finish at 4,916.0, a rise of 0.5 percent for the week. The benchmark is down 7.2 percent so in 2016.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 40.7 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 6,121.6, down 0.8 percent for the week.