Australia: Shares track Wall Street higher; tech, gold stocks gain

[BENGALURU] Australian shares rose in early trade on Tuesday as tech and gold stocks advanced, and Wall Street rose overnight, with investors looking to minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy meeting.

The S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.27 per cent to 6,773 by 2315 GMT.

Overnight, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at record highs as hopes for a quicker economic recovery continued to be boosted by mass vaccinations and further stimulus in the United States.

Investors now await minutes from the Australian central bank's March policy meeting, a day after governor Philip Lowe said it would maintain policy settings until it met its employment and inflation goals.

Tech stocks rose 1.3 per cent, with accounting software maker Xero and investor services provider Computershare gaining 1 per cent each.

Gold stocks gained 1 per cent as prices of the yellow metal rose against retreating US Treasury yields. Top independent gold miner Newcrest Mining was up 1.4 per cent.

Export-reliant healthcare stocks also climbed on a weaker Australian dollar, with heavyweight CSL rising 0.8 per cent.

Energy stocks, however, fell after oil prices declined. Oil and gas explorers Oil Search and Santos Ltd slipped 0.9 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively.

Shares of the real estate developer Dexus rose after it struck a deal to merge an unlisted property fund with a diversified real estate investment fund run by AMP Capital.

In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell on losses among financial and industrial stocks.

REUTERS