SYDNEY/WELLINGTON: Australian shares closed higher for a fourth straight session on Tuesday as progress in the development of a Covid-19 vaccine raised hopes of a swifter recovery in the global economy and bolstered hard-hit travel, tourism and energy stocks.

The S&P/ASX 200 index, however, ended 0.7% higher after jumping 2.2% to a more than eight-month high in early session as a slump in overnight bullion prices weighed on gold stocks.

Nearly all stocks on the sub-index were higher, with Oil Search and Beach Energy climbing more than 14% each.

Heavyweight financial stocks rose to their highest levels since June 10, with the "Big Four" banks adding between 3% and 7.6%.

National Australia Bank ended 7.6% higher, overtaking Sydney-based rival Westpac Banking Corp as the country's second-largest lender based on market value.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index hit a record high before closing marginally higher at 12,612.39.

Risk appetite got a boost globally after US drugmaker Pfizer and German partner BioNTech said a large-scale trial of their vaccine showed it was more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19.

"Investors appeared to have switched out from big tech into the long-underperformed traditional industries last night, kicking off a new chapter of sectoral rotation," Margaret Yang, a strategist with news and research website DailyFX, wrote in a note.

"How to strike a balance between an escalating pandemic wave against vaccine hopes will likely be a main theme for trading till year end."

Tourism and travel-related stocks such as Flight Centre Travel Group, Sydney Airport Holdings and Qantas Airways rose more than 8% each on the news. Energy stocks, which have been among the worst hit by the pandemic due to a plunge in fuel demand, surged as much as 8.9% to record their best session since early April.-Reuters