Australian shares climb; New Zealand ends at record high

Australian shares rose to their highest closing level in two weeks with banks and miners pushing the index higher, mirroring solid gains on Wall Street. The S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 1.1 percent or 62.40 points to 5,818.1. The overnight rally in Wall Street was helped by financial stocks which rose after the Federal Reserve ratified plans from US banks to use extra capital for stock buybacks and dividends.
Financials accounted for nearly half the gains on the Australian benchmark with the "Big-Four" banks ending between 1.6 percent and 2.4 percent higher. BT Investment Management Ltd closed 2.4 percent higher while Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd advanced 1.4 percent.