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MELBOURNE - Australian stocks ended the day in positive territory as the banks and the big miners made good gains.
At the 1615 AEST close, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 16.3 points at 6355.1, while the all ordinaries gained 18.8 points to close at 6369.0 points.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the June share price index contract rose one points to 6373 on a volume of 17,493 contracts.
"It's been a fairly strong day for some sectors, especially banks and resources," CMC Markets analyst Josh Whiting said.
Mr Whiting said the big banks had done well in early trading.
"They've come off their highs a little bit, but the resources have taken off the slack from that and kept the market in positive territory," he said.
Mr Whiting said Rio Tinto Ltd had been the biggest mover on the market, adding $1.90, or 2.05 per cent, to $94.50.
BHP Billiton Ltd was steady at $31.37.
Investors showed enthusiasm for the miners after BHP boss Chip Goodyear said the resources giant was always looking for acquisition opportunities.
His comments follow speculation earlier this month that BHP was considering swallowing its rival Rio.
"People really haven't let go of that idea, considering that it does make some sense to some analysts," Mr Whiting said.
"We've seen a pullback from around the $99 highs (in Rio shares) in recent days.
"But we've seen fresh interest in Rio pushing it back above the $95 level (during today's trading)."
Among the major banks, Commonwealth bank added 23 cents to $55.18, National Australia Bank increased 17 cents to $42.95, ANZ Banking Group improved 10 cents to $29.72.
Westpac was alone among the majors, sliding 20 cents to $26.50.
Stock Move Price AMP +0.130 10.400 ANZ Bank +0.100 29.720 BHPBilton - 31.370 CBA +0.230 55.180 NAB +0.170 42.950 NewsCorp -0.140 28.840 Rio Tinto +1.900 94.500 TelstraCp - 4.800 WestpacBk -0.200 26.500 Woolwrths -0.130 28.370.
- AAP