Australia: Shares rally for a 10th session, NZ stocks pause

[SYDNEY] Australian shares scaled a near seven-year peak on Wednesday in a winning run stretching 10 straight sessions, a day after a rate cut at home stoked expectations for further monetary stimulus, while New Zealand stocks were subdued.

The S&P/ASX 200 index added 69.9 points or 1.2 per cent to 5,777.3, at the close of trade. It climbed as far as 5,805.1, the highest since 2008, with the benchmark up nearly 7 percent so far this year.

New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index was a touch firmer at 5,785.32, having added 3.3 points. The index climbed to a record high of 5,820.0 last week.

REUTERS