(Reuters) - Australian shares edged higher on Thursday, snapping four straight sessions of fall, on the back of gains in banks, while a recovery in commodity prices spurred demand for materials.
The S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> closed 0.3 percent, or 19.5 points, higher at 6,215.4, after shedding 1.70 points on Wednesday.
Financials closed higher after a weak start and led the gains on the benchmark index.
Financials rose because the Australian market is largely yield- and dividend-driven, said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at AxiTrader.
Investment bank Macquarie Group Ltd <MQG.AX> was among the biggest boosts with a jump of 3.7 percent, while the country's "Big Four" climbed between 0.6 percent and 0.9 percent.
BHP <BHP.AX>, the world's biggest miner, rose 1.8 percent and dominated the gains on the benchmark, bolstered by a recovery in copper prices and rise in iron ore futures.
Other blue chips in the sector also firmed, with Rio Tinto Ltd <RIO.AX> climbing 1.2 percent, while Newcrest Mining Ltd <NCM.AX> strengthened 1.9 percent to a more than six-week high, boosted by higher gold prices. [GOL/]
Shares of oil-focused firms also climbed, helped by overnight gains in Brent prices.
Woodside Petroleum Ltd <WPL.AX> rose 1.8 percent to a three-year high, while Origin Energy Ltd <ORG.AX> climbed 1.3 percent.
In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index <.NZ50> ticked up 2.27 points to 8,998.79.
Utilities led the gains, with Contact Energy Ltd <CEN.NZ> rising 1.2 percent, while Spark New Zealand Ltd <SPK.NZ> firmed 0.5 percent.
(Reporting by Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
