Australian shares rose on Monday, snapping a four-session losing streak, after the FBI cleared Democrat Hillary Clinton in its latest email review, lifting a cloud over her presidential campaign days before the November 8 election. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 1.4 percent, or 69.98 points, to 5,250.8 at the close of trade. It was the benchmark index's best day in nearly four months.
The FBI said on Sunday it stood by its earlier finding that no criminal charges were warranted against Clinton for using a private email server for government work. Financials led the gains, with Macquarie Group climbing 3 percent to top the financial index. Westpac Banking Corp gained 2.7 percent, outperforming the broader market, as investors drew comfort from its decision to keep its dividend steady.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 2.4 percent, or 163.8 points, to finish the session at 6,872.27. Auckland International Airport and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp both added more than 4 percent. "After that announcement on Sunday by the FBI more people are expecting a Clinton victory" said Tony Farnham an economist with Patersons Securities. "She seems to be the market's favourite".
Investors have generally seen Clinton as the candidate who would maintain the status quo, while there is more market uncertainty over what a Trump presidency might mean in terms of economic policy, free trade and geopolitics. Large-cap miner BHP Billiton moved 2 percent higher while Rio Tinto gained more than 1 percent. The energy index rose more than 1 percent, posting its biggest percentage rise in over a week. Oil major Santos Ltd jumped 4.3 percent to hit its highest in a week.
Bucking the trend, gold stocks moved into the red on weak prices, with the benchmark dropping as much as 3.9 percent, its biggest percentage loss in a month. Newcrest Mining Ltd drifted 2.7 percent lower. New Zealand's industrial and telecom stocks gave a major boost to the index, with Spark New Zealand Ltd up 2.8 percent and Auckland International Airport Ltd rising 3.8 percent.