Australian shares advance as miners gain, lower crude boosts sentiment

Australian shares experienced a rise on Tuesday, propelled by heavyweights in the mining and financial sectors, as lower crude prices enhanced investor sentiment. The S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 0.4% at 9,143.50 points, marking a 0.5% increase from Monday. Oil futures experienced a decline as investors took profits following recent gains and disregarded US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's announcement of potential secondary sanctions on entities engaging with Iran.

Energy stocks, closely linked to oil price movements, continued their upward trajectory for the seventh day in a row, reaching a four-month high with gains of up to 1.8%. Woodside Energy, which saw its first-half profit surpass expectations, saw a near 3% rise, reaching a four-month high. The broad mining sub-index climbed 0.8% for its fourth consecutive session, giving the largest push to the benchmark index due to robust commodity prices.

Shares of BHP Group and Rio Tinto increased by 1.3% and 0.7%, respectively. Gold stocks also gained as much as 1.5%, reaching their highest levels since mid-March, as higher gold prices boosted the sector. Northern Star Resources and Evolution Mining registered gains of 0.6% and 1%, respectively. Financial institutions saw a slight increase of 0.2%, with major banks rising between 0.2% and 0.6%.

The healthcare sub-index experienced a rise of nearly 1%. However, the staples sub-index gained 0.6%. Coles Group experienced a minor decline of 0.3% after reporting a weaker-than-anticipated start to fiscal 2027, as supermarket division sales growth slowed temporarily. New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 index increased by 0.2% to 13,911.12.