* Aussie benchmark briefly rises above 5,800 resistance level
* Index down after 4 sessions of gains, posts weekly gain
* Mining stocks and financials top drags
* Energy stocks record their best week since April 2016 (Updates to close)
By Rashmi Ashok
Jan 11 (Reuters) - Australian shares ended lower on Friday, snapping four days of gains after briefly popping above key resistance, as mining stocks were hit by softer base metal prices.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO fell 0.4 percent, or 20.70 points, to 5,774.60 at the close of trade. The index rose above the important 5,800-point resistance level at around 0100 GMT, before steadily edging lower.
Despite the day's losses, the index rose 2.8 percent for the week. The benchmark was up 0.3 percent on Thursday.
The metals and mining index .AXMM underpinned losses, shedding nearly 1 percent at the close, after iron-ore prices slipped about 0.3 percent on demand concerns. IRONORE/
The world's biggest-listed miner BHP Group BHP.AX shed 1.1 percent, while rival Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) Ltd RIO.AX dropped 0.6 percent.
Financial stocks .AXFJ also ended lower, with Commonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX down 1.1 percent and Westpac Banking Corp WBC.AX off about 1 percent.
Financials snapped four consecutive winning sessions, but they notched a weekly gain of more than 2 percent.
Also in the red were energy stocks .AXEJ which snapped six straight sessions of gains to end lower. Their rally was cut short after oil prices slipped amid concerns over the outlook for the global economy. O/R
Despite the lacklustre performance, the energy sub-index posted a weekly gain of 5.6 percent, its best week since April 2016. Woodside Petroleum Ltd WPL.AX edged lower while Beach Energy Ltd BPT.AX shed 0.3 percent.
Healthcare stocks .AXHJ also slipped, dragged by losses in the stock of heavyweight CSL Ltd CSL.AX and Ramsay Health Care Ltd RHC.AX by 0.7 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.
Gold stocks .AXGD also lost their sheen, with Saracen Mineral Holdings SAR.AX shedding 2.3 percent and Newcrest Mining Ltd NCM.AX down about 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 rose 40.42 points, or 0.5 percent, to finish the session at 8,959.58.
Dairy firm Synlait Milk Ltd SML.NZ rose 0.8 percent while Sky Network Television Ltd SKT.AX gained 3.1 percent.