(Reuters) - Australian shares finished higher on Wednesday, thanks to a surge in BHP Group <BHP.AX> stock after the world's biggest miner reported a rebound in iron ore output for the fourth quarter.
The S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> rose 0.5% to 6,673.30 at the close of trade, more than recouping the 0.2% loss on Tuesday.
BHP reported a rebound in iron ore output in the fourth quarter after a cyclone hit production in March, and forecast modest output growth in 2019/20 amid a surge in prices.
While the miner's output was soft year-on-year, it was up 12% on the March quarter, which typically is the weakest quarter due to Australian weather conditions.
BHP's 1.4% rise pushed up the mining index by 0.7%. As iron ore prices pulled back from record levels on Wednesday, BHP's smaller rival Rio Tinto <RIO.AX> finished flat.
Iron ore miner Fortescue <FMG.AX> fell 2.1%.
Gains in the financial sector after two straight sessions of losses further buttressed the benchmark index, with the country's top four banks gaining in the range of 0.1%-0.7%.
The energy sector was the major contributor to losses despite an uptick in oil prices after steep falls in the previous session. [O/R]
The sub-index slid 0.3%, with its biggest constituents Woodside Petroleum <WPL.AX> and Santos Ltd <STO.AX> losing 0.3% and 0.7%, respectively.
Their smaller sector peer Oil Search <OSH.AX> slid 3.1% to its lowest closing level in a week after Papua New Guinea's new prime minister pressed the company and its oil major partners to pay more tax on Tuesday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index <.NZ50> closed up 3.6 points at 10,654.80.
Air New Zealand <AIR.NZ> was the top advancer on the benchmark, adding 2.2%. On the other hand, Fletcher Building's <FBU.NZ> 3.5% fall made it the top loser.
(Reporting by Rushil Dutta in Bengaluru; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
