Mining stocks have dug Australia's share market out of a two-session losing streak, but the bourse remains under pressure as investor uncertainty lingers.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 gained 26.3 points on Thursday, up 0.3 per cent to 8,828.3, as the broader All Ordinaries rose 27.4 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 9,098.6.
The top-200 surged almost 70 points in early trade, but handed back more than half those gains as momentum waned in the afternoon.
Raw materials stocks rallied 1.4 per cent on the back of gold miners and iron ore giants, while an earnings miss from NAB dragged on the financial sector.
"Mining stocks were the real ballast in the market, with major mining companies up very strongly," Moomoo market strategist Michael McCarthy told AAP.
"And that related to the idea that if we're not going to get rate cuts, it's because growth is better than expected, and if growth is better than expected, the falls we've been forecasting for industrial commodities in particular might not come to fruition."
BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue each gained more than 1.6 per cent, despite iron ore futures continuing their grind lower to $US104.20 a tonne.
Gold stocks caught a bid with Northern Star, Evolution and Newmont charging higher as the precious metal's spot price edged higher to $US3,989 ($A6,124) an ounce.
Copper producers Sandfire and Capstone forged ahead as the base metal continued to recover from a pullback earlier in the week, while rare earths and critical minerals plays remained under selling pressure.
Financials slumped 0.1 per cent as NAB's underwhelming profit result dragged its shares 3.3 per cent lower to $43.06, while Westpac shares fell 1.2 per cent as its third-quarter update on Tuesday continued to weigh.
Investors appeared to play favourites with the big four, as ANZ gained 0.4 per cent and CBA rallied 1.3 per cent to $178.57.
"The perception that has arisen - given Westpac and NAB's reports and the view that overall system growth is higher - means that CBA and ANZ must be outperforming," Mr McCarthy said.
"Now that's an interesting thesis, and we'll find when we hear from ANZ next week as to whether or not that is actually the case, or if analysts are overestimating the growth in financial sector at the moment."
Energy stocks surged 0.8 per cent despite oil prices lingering on par with June lows, as Woodside posted a second day of gains following its investor briefing and Santos edged higher as LNG futures spiked to four-month highs.
Gaming machine supplier Light & Wonder was the top-200's best performer, rocketing more than eight per cent after posting solid profit growth on top of a modest lift in revenue.
At the other end of the scale was James Hardie, which plummeted 12.7 per cent after it was removed from New York finance company MSCI's Australia index.
James Hardie has been under pressure after proceeding with a merger and considering a partial delisting without shareholder approval.
Defence technology stock Droneshield has gone from market darling to bourse whipping boy, tumbling 11.7 per cent on Thursday and down almost 50 per cent from October's record highs, amid concerns of frothy valuations in the sector.
Its recent tumble takes Droneshield's 2025 gains to a more-than-respectable 335 per cent.
In other company news, Domino's Pizza shares jumped 4.7 per cent to $20.04 after securing oversubscribed commitments for $1.1 billion in new debt facilities.
Seven West Media shares slipped 1.8 per cent to 13.8 cents after suffering a first strike on its remuneration report from shareholders.
Looking ahead, Nine Entertainment and Qantas will hold their annual meetings on Friday, and Macquarie will post its results for the recent half.
The Australian dollar is buying 65.07 US cents, up from 64.90 US cents on Wednesday at 5pm.
ON THE ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 rose 26.3 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 8,828.3
* The broader All Ordinaries gained 27.4 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 9,098.6
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar trades for:
* 65.07 US cents, from 64.90 US cents at 5pm on Wednesday
* 100.14 Japanese yen, from 99.63 Japanese yen
* 56.54 euro cents, from 56.47 euro cents
* 49.83 British pence, from 49.84 British pence
* 114.99 NZ cents, from 114.82 NZ cents
