Australian shares were broadly higher on Friday and on track for a second straight week of gains as Wall Street celebrated upbeat economic data.
Each of the major US indexes touched record highs after economic indicators suggested the economy was picking up speed, bolstering firm expectations of a US Federal Reserve rate rise in June.
The ADP private sector report showed 253,000 jobs were added in May, beating a Reuters poll of 185,000 and providing a sturdy platform for the official non-farm payrolls report later in the day.
“We’ve got a positive lead from Wall Street to work off this morning and we’re seeing continuation in terms of bargain hunting in the financial space,” said Ben Le Brun, markets analyst at OptionXpress.
“Perhaps we’re seeing bargain hunting across the market given we’ve seen a sizeable pullback in the month of May.”
