Australia: Shares rise as tech stocks track Wall Street strength

[BENGALURU] Australian shares rose on Tuesday, aided by tech stocks tracking a positive overnight finish on the Wall Street after the US earnings season kicked in to high gear, while gains in domestic energy stocks and miners further supported the index.

The S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.3 per cent at 7465.2 points, as of 2338 GMT, set for its sixth straight session of gains.

On the Wall Street, Dow Industrials and S&P 500 closed at record highs overnight, bolstering tech stocks back home.

Aussie tech sector rose 1.5 per cent with buy-now-pay-later giant Afterpay Ltd leading gains in the sub-index, up 4 per cent.

Miners rose as much as 0.7 per cent after iron prices recovered from last week's selloff.

Lithium miner Pilbara Minerals surged up to 8.6 per cent and was among the top gainers in the sub-index after it announced the sealing of a joint venture deal with steelmaker POSCO.

Casino operator Crown Resorts was the top gainer in the benchmark index, soaring up to 12.8 per cent on being granted a two-year grace period to improve its Melbourne casino operations, rather than being immediately stripped of its licence to operate in Australia's second-most populous city.

Shares of rival Star Entertainment also advanced to notch the second spot in the ASX 200 index.

Oil Search was up 1.3 per cent after the company had reported that its third-quarter operating revenue more than doubled. Simultaneously, the country's biggest fuel supplier Ampol also delivered a quarterly profit surge, pushing shares up 1.1 per cent.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose as much as 0.4 per cent following an extended weekend. Kathmandu Holdings climbed 3.1 per cent and was the top gainer in the index.

REUTERS