Australian shares rose 1.7 percent on Thursday for their biggest one-day percentage gain since December 2, recovering after four days of falls as short-covering sent miners sharply higher and helped banks recoup losses. Heavyweight miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto both added close to 2 percent and gold miner Newcrest gained 2.9 percent while Westpac led banks higher with a 2.4 percent jump.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose 75.5 points to 4,660.2, according to the latest data. It fell 1 percent to a 10-week low on Wednesday. Commodity and stock markets were encouraged after a report China and other Asian investors are expected to buy Portuguese bailout bonds when the eurozone's rescue fund starts auctioning them next month.
Some investors were also positioning for a strong GDP number in the United States later on Thursday. The government is expected to report a 2.1 percent annual growth rate in the first quarter, according to a Reuters survey, rather than the 1.8 percent pace it estimated last month. Pay-tv firm Austar spiked 7.9 percent to A$1.365, although that was still below a take-over offer from rival Foxtel of A$1.52 per share cash. Jamie Spiteri, senior dealer at Shaw Stockbroking, said competition issues around cross-media ownership and content were unresolved. New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index fell 0.8 percent to 3,527.6.