By Shashwat Pradhan
Sept 23 (Reuters) - Australian shares climbed again on Friday and stayed on track for their biggest weekly gain in two months, led by financial stocks, as investors continued to welcome the U.S. Federal Reserve's cautious approach to future rate hikes.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO , which rose the past three days, was up 0.6 percent, or 31.14 points, to 5,405.6 at 0230 GMT.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday maintained the low-interest rate environment that has helped sustain the bull market for stocks since the global financial crisis. MKTS/GLOB prices rallied again on Thursday, pushed higher for a second day by U.S. government data that showed a surprising crude inventory drop. Reserve Bank of Australia governor Philip Lowe gave an optimistic assessment of the economy in his first public appearance on Thursday, but left the door open for more rate cuts. Australian dollar AUD=D4 climbed to a two-week high of $0.7638 following the RBA governor's upbeat views. you are an international fund manager, you can look much more positively at the Australian market because the income that you are buying is actually appreciating in Australian dollar terms," said Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG Markets.
"So we got that kind of perfect storm in the Australian market to outperform," he said.
Financial stocks accounted for nearly half of Friday's gains on the benchmark. National Australia Bank NAB.AX , the biggest lender, advanced for an eighth straight session, rising 1.6 percent.
Iluka Resources Ltd ILU.AX was the top percentage gainer, jumping as much as 6.4 percent.
Logistics provider Brambles Ltd BXB.AX snapped two sessions of losses to rise 2 percent.
Mining giant Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) Ltd RIO.AX extended gains into a fourth day, climbing as much as 1.4 percent to touch a near one-month high.
At the other end, gold stocks .AXGD slid more than 2 percent as spot gold XAU= inched lower. Newcrest Mining Ltd NCM.AX fell 2 percent, erasing recent gains.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 edged lower by 0.2 percent, or 17.01 points, to 7,294.7.
Industrials, materials and telecom stocks were the biggest drag on the index.
Air New Zealand AIR.NZ fell as much as 3.2 percent to its lowest since May while Heartland Bank Ltd HBL.NZ skidded 3 percent.
Orion Health OHE.NZ tumbled 4.6 percent to hit a more-than five month low.
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