At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 advanced 77.69 points, or 1.06%, to 7,386.41. The broader All Ordinaries increased 78.05 points, or 1.03%, to 7,658.90.
Shares of materials were an important driver of the market today after a number releasing quarterly reports. Lithium miners Galaxy Resources (GXY) and Orocobre (ORE) stood out, with ORE jumping 9.9% on its quarterly report showing uplift in lithium ore prices and improved production numbers at its Olaroz facility in Argentina. GXY gained 9.5%, also on a strong update. BHP Group climbed 3.1% after the world's largest miner struck a nickel supply deal with U.S. electric carmaker Tesla. Rio Tinto added 1.2%, while Iluka Resources spiked 7.2%. Gold miner Northern Star Resources soared 5.4% after it signed a deal to sell its Kundana assets to Evolution Mining.
Energy stocks such as Woodside Petroleum and Origin Energy rose about 3% after oil prices rose more than 4% on Wednesday to extend gains from the previous session. Shares of Santos gained 2.6% after the company saw record June quarter sales of US$1.1b and record first half sales revenue of over US$2b on strong performance and improved commodity prices.
Rare earths miner Lynas (LYC) finished 9% higher after announcing it received a $14.8m grant from the Australian Government for its Modern Manufacturing Initiative. The grant will enable LYC to commercialise an industry-first Rare Earth carbonate refining process.
CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7365, still above levels below $0.732 seen yesterday.
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