A night of simultaneous highs on Wall St helped the ASX to a strong gain, with mining and energy stocks doing the heavy lifting.
All four major US stock indices recorded simultaneous record highs for first time since 1999 on Monday night, and the positive mood spilled over into the Asian session.
At close of trade the S&P;/ASX 200 Index ended 61 points, or 1.2 per cent higher, at 5413.3 points, while the All Ordinaries finished 61 points, or 1.1 per cent, higher at 5480.6. While miners and energy names provided the bulk of the support, only one in 10 of the top 200 ASX names finished the session in the red.
The general upbeat mood came from a surge in oil prices on bets of a deal to curb output when OPEC meets next week combined with a return of confidence to the market post-US election, Fairmont Equities managing director Michael Gable said.
"It reflects the relief that the last six months, with Brexit and the election, is over," he said.
That the market eased from its intraday high of 5425 points was a sign that it had hit a key resistance level, suggesting a few days of softness into the end of the week that includes the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, Mr Gable said.
"If there's any weakness it might not extend for more than a couple of days. The market might want to push to a new [year-to-date high] of 5600 by the year's end," he said. "I expect the rest of the week to be soft but we should use that an opportunity to buy stocks we like."
Miners and energy names were the standouts, ending 2.8 per cent and 2.6 per cent higher, respectively. BHP Billiton was the day's strongest stock by weight, rallying 4 per cent, while Rio Tinto added 2.2 per cent. Fortescue recorded an outsized gain of 6.8 per cent as iron ore futures trading in China pointed to a further rise in the iron ore price, which had eased on Monday night. South32 jumped 5.4 per cent.
Among oil and gas names, Woodside Petroleum added 2.4 per cent.
Consumer staples also had a strong day, with rivals Wesfarmers and Woolworths adding 1.7 per cent and 1.8 per cent, respectively.
The real estate sector was the only weak spot, ending 0.1 per cent lower.
Gains were also recorded across the region's bourses, including Japan's Nikkei 225, which hit a fresh six-month high after recovering from early weakness due to a strong earthquake off the east coast of Fukushima Prefecture.
Market Movers
Oil
Oil on Tuesday extended a strong Monday night rally, rising 1.3 per cent as OPEC moves to co-ordinate a production cut by November 30 involving all 13 member states and non-member Russia. Brent crude oil rose to over $US49 per barrel, up 13 per cent from last week. These gains boosted the ASX, with the energy sub-index jumping 2.6 per cent and all other sectors also experiencing increases. Although the OPEC agreement could fall through, analysts say the improvement in demand is sustainable.
Wall Street
The S&P; 500 Index, the Dow Jones, the Nasdaq and the Russell 2000 small-cap index have simultaneously peaked for the first time since the dot-com boom of 1999 thanks to optimism that OPEC will cut oil production for the first time in 8 years, and as the recent, flagging optimism around a Donald Trump presidency regained some steam. The indices closed up 0.8 per cent, 0.5 per cent, 0.9 per cent and 0.5 per cent, respectively. The US Federal Reserve said it is close to lifting interest rates thanks to the strength of the economy.
Yen
The Aussie dollar gained almost half a cent on the greenback as traders ditched US dollars the for the yen following a magnitude 7.3 earthquake in Japan. The yen's status as a safe-haven currency was solidified after it climbed in the wake of the earthquake, as it had after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. This weakened the US dollar, with the Aussie dollar moving up accordingly, analysts said. The Aussie fetched just shy of US74¢ in late trade.
Technology One
TechnologyOne's revenue exceeded analysts' and internal expectations, climbing 14 per cent to $249 million over the past financial year. Investors reacted positively, pushing stock up 11 per cent to $5.89. TechOne, which touts itself as Australia's largest enterprise software company, has seen revenues increase for an unbroken stretch of 17 years. It attributes the strong result to its software as a service (SAAS) business, which more than doubled for the second consecutive year, and said it now expects profit margins to grow from 21 per cent to 25 per cent.
Stock watch: A2 Milk
Growing sales in infant formula and milk products helped New Zealand-based A2 Milk Company's revenue surge 96 per cent to $NZ155.2 million ($148.4 million) in the four months to October compared to the previous corresponding period, the company announced at its AGM on Tuesday.
Behind the lift were strong sales in China in the build up to Singles' Day, the nation's biggest shopping event of the year. The company also flagged it hoped to announce a dividend by the end of the 2016/17 financial year, if the current strong trends continue. A2 Milk shares closed 7.1 per cent higher to $2.11