Australia: Miners lift shares higher; BHP sweetens Noront bid

[BENGALURU] Australian shares rose on Wednesday as metal-centric stocks jumped on firm commodity prices, while global miner BHP hit a one-month high after topping billionaire Andrew Forrest's bid for nickel miner Noront Resources.

The S&P/ASX 200 index rose about 1 per cent to 7,447.3 by 0022 GMT.

Miners were the biggest boosts on the local bourse, climbing 1.6 per cent, after benchmark iron ore prices recovered from four consecutive sessions of losses overnight.

The country's big mining names - BHP Group, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals - pushed the sub-index higher, climbing between 2.3 per cent and 2.4 per cent.

Global miner BHP also topped a takeover offer for Canadian nickel miner Noront Resources by Forrest's Wyloo Metals earlier this week, increasing its offer to C$419.3 million (S$456 million), or C$0.75 per share.

Online retailer Kogan.com was the top gainer on the local bourse, rising 9.8 per cent to hit its highest in over 1-1/2 months after reporting an increase in gross sales during the September quarter.

The Australian tech index rose 1.9 per cent, tracking Wall Street, which enjoyed the biggest boosts from the technology sector.

Software provider for logistics firms WiseTech Global led gains on the sub-index, advancing 2.8 per cent, while sub-index favourite Afterpay added 2.4 per cent, hitting the highest in over three weeks.

Oil and gas explorer Beach Energy declined up to 5 per cent to mark its worst day in nearly three weeks after reporting a 15.7 per cent dip in first-quarter production.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.5 per cent to 13,128.1.

REUTERS