(Corrects paragraph 3 to clarify that quote was referring to index falling 3% over last two sessions)
* Investors await outcome of Westpac's board meeting
* Energy Stocks sees best session In two weeks
* Oceanagold drops to lowest level in 46 months
By Shreya Mariam Job
Nov 22 (Reuters) - Energy and material stocks buoyed the Australian benchmark index in thin trade on Friday after two sessions of heavy selling, while the outcome of the Westpac board meeting and a major money laundering scandal weighed on sentiment.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO rose 0.5%, or 35.6 points, to 5,708.50 by 0057 GMT. The benchmark fell 0.7% on Thursday.
"At one stage yesterday the market was down close to 3%," said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, referring to the loss over the last two sessions. "Today's bounce back looks like a recapturing of ground."
Material stocks .AXMM gained 1%, supported by the iron ore miners after overnight prices of the commodity ticked higher.
The country's top miners, BHP Group BHP.AX and Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) RIO.AX , rose over 1%, while iron ore giant Fortescue Metals Group FMG.AX rose 3.2%.
Energy stocks .AXEJ rose as much as 1.8% and recorded their best session in two weeks, underpinned by a two-day rally in oil prices on longer OPEC supply cuts and optimism on the trade front.
Shares of Beach Energy BPT.AX rose 1.5%, recovering a fraction of the near 4% they lost during the past two sessions.
Woodside Petroleum WPL.AX also logged a 1.3% gain.
Meanwhile, concerns over the financial sector continued in the wake of allegations that Westpac breached anti-money laundering laws. The prospect of the country's second-largest lender announcing major executive changes at its board meeting later in the day also weighed on financial stocks .AXFJ .
Shares of Westpac Banking Corp WBC.AX slid 1.4% after Investment bank Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) GS.N cut its target price amid the accusations. Australia Bank NAB.AX and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group ANZ.AX shed 0.5% each.
Gold stocks .AXGD also edged lower, weighed mostly by heavy declines in shares of OceanaGold Corp OGC.AX which fell as much as 11% to their lowest level in 46 months.
Separately, following the takeover bid by Australian nickel miner Independence Group IGO.AX for its smaller peer Panoramic Resources Ltd PAN.AX , Independence Group said it would conduct due diligence on Panoramic and its flagship Savannah nickel project. of Independence Group and Panoramic rose 1.9% and 9.6%, respectively.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell marginally to 10,951.94.
NZ-listed shares of Westpac Baking Corp WBC.NZ dropped 1.4% while Fisher & Paykel Healthcare FPH.NZ dipped 1.5%.