(Reuters) - Australian shares ended near their highest level in two-and-a-half years on Friday, amid broad-based gains driven by materials and financials stocks.
Eight out of 10 sectors closed the day in positive territory as the S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> advanced 0.5 percent, or 28.193 points, to 5,959 at the close of trade. The benchmark index rose 1 percent for the week.
Materials led the upward charge of the index with metals and mining index <.AXMM> climbing 1 percent to its highest since August 2014.
Benchmark iron ore <DCIOcv1> on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose for a third day, gaining 1.1 percent to 442 yuan on unexpected physical demand. [IRONORE/]
Mining giant Rio Tinto Ltd <RIO.AX> rose 1.1 percent to an over 6-year high, while its peer BHP Billiton Ltd <BHP.AX> gained 1.2 percent.
The Australian financials index <.AXFJ> firmed 0.4 percent, with Westpac Banking Corp <WBC.AX> accounting for most of the gains.
Westpac, the country's No.2 lender, said on Friday it had agreed to sell its Hastings fund management business to a London-based asset manager, in the latest move by a big Australian bank to offload a capital-intensive division. Westpac closed the day up 0.8 percent.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index <.NZ50> fell 0.22 percent, or 17.940 points, to finish at 8,065.120. The index ended the week 0.25 percent lower, registering a second consecutive week of losses.
Dairy firm a2 Milk Company <ATM.NZ> fell 3.2 percent and was the biggest drag on the index.
Conversely, Fletcher Building Ltd <FBU.NZ> gained 2.6 percent on Friday, its best day since Sept. 25.
(Reporting by Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)
