Australia stocks closed higher on Friday, with the S&P/ASX 200 reaching a new three-month high. The Metals & Mining, Resources, and Materials sectors contributed to the positive momentum.
At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 rose by 0.88%.
Among the top performers on the S&P/ASX 200 were Zip Co Ltd (ASX:ZIP), which surged by 15.89% or 0.09 points to trade at 0.62 at the close. Link Administration Holdings Ltd (ASX:LNK) also recorded gains, adding 9.84% or 0.16 points to end at 1.73, while Adbri Ltd (ASX:ABC) rose by 9.57% or 0.20 points, closing at 2.29 in late trade.
Conversely, Cromwell Property Group (ASX:CMW) was among the worst performers, falling by 4.84% or 0.02 points to trade at 0.44 at the close. Megaport Ltd (ASX:MP1) declined by 4.79% or 0.48 points to end at 9.55, and Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:CUV) was down 3.39% or 0.58 points, closing at 16.52.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange, with 672 gaining, 549 declining, and 414 remaining unchanged.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, increased by 0.95% to 9.87.
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for February delivery rose by 0.31% or 6.30 to $2,051.20 a troy ounce. Crude oil for delivery in January increased by 0.38% or 0.27 to reach $71.85 a barrel, while the February Brent oil contract rose by 0.43% or 0.33, trading at $76.94 a barrel.
AUD/USD remained unchanged at 0.67, while AUD/JPY rose by 0.08% to 95.14.
The US Dollar Index Futures was down by 0.06% at 101.51.