(Updates to close)
SYDNEY, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Australian shares rose for an eighth straight day on Tuesday, climbing 1.15 percent led by banks and supermarkets while resource stocks continued to weigh on the index. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N14I0RF
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO added 59.65 points to close at the day's high of 5,267.30, a level not seen since Dec. 2. The benchmark rose 1.3 percent in a shortened Christmas Eve session on Thursday before a four-day weekend.
The index is also set for its best quarterly performance since the January-March period.
Trading is likely to remain fairly tepid, however, given a dearth of local drivers and a holiday-shortened week.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 edged up 1.08 percent or 66.91 points to finish the session at a record 6,292.44.
(Editing by Richard Borsuk)