Australian shares were broadly firmer on Friday, and for a second straight week, tracking a buoyant Wall Street and propped up by gains in banks and miners. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.9 percent to 5,788.10, after it gained 0.2 percent the previous session. For the week, the index rose 0.6 percent. The market lost 3.4 percent in May. Major US share indexes touched record highs after manufacturing and jobs indicators suggested the economy was picking up speed, bolstering firm expectations of a US Federal Reserve rate rise in June.
The ADP private sector report showed 253,000 jobs were added in May, beating a Reuters poll of 185,000 and providing a sturdy platform for the official non-farm payrolls report due later on Friday. Ben Le Brun, markets analyst at OptionXpress, said Aussie markets were also seeing a continuation in terms of bargain hunting in the financial space. The 'Big Four' banks were the biggest gainers on the main index, up in a range of 0.7 percent to 1.2 percent.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP's 1.7 percent and 1.4 percent rise, respectively, boosted both the benchmark and the mining index. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index added 0.7 percent, or 49.07 points, to finish the session at 7,499.97. The benchmark gained for a second straight week, adding 0.8 percent.
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