Australian shares at two-month peak; New Zealand at fresh record high

Australian shares rallied for the ninth straight session on Wednesday to a 2-month high in holiday-thinned trade, largely led by late buying in some resource stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 1 percent, or 52.56 points, at 5,319.9. The benchmark climbed 1.15 percent in the previous session to touch a 1-month high. All sectors participated in the rally with miners Fortescue and Oz Minerals ending 1.4 percent and 2 percent higher, respectively. Major miner Rio Tinto erased early losses to end flat while BHP Billiton pared losses to end down 0.1 percent.