* S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average close at record highs
* Investors await minutes from central bank's March policy meeting
* Gold stocks benefit from rise in bullion prices
By Soumyajit Saha
March 16 (Reuters) - Australian shares rose in early trade on Tuesday as tech and gold stocks advanced, and Wall Street rose overnight, with investors looking to minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy meeting.
The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO was up 0.27% to 6,773 by 2315 GMT.
Overnight, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at record highs as hopes for a quicker economic recovery continued to be boosted by mass vaccinations and further stimulus in the United States. .N
Investors now await minutes from the Australian central bank's March policy meeting, a day after governor Philip Lowe said it would maintain policy settings until it met its employment and inflation goals. stocks .AXIJ rose 1.3%, with accounting software maker Xero Ltd XRO.AX and investor services provider Computershare Ltd CPU.AX gaining 1% each.
Gold stocks .AXGD gained 1% as prices of the yellow metal rose against retreating U.S. Treasury yields. Top independent gold miner Newcrest Mining NCM.AX was up 1.4%.
Export-reliant healthcare stocks .AXHJ also climbed on a weaker Australian dollar, with heavyweight CSL Ltd CSL.AX rising 0.8%.
Energy stocks .AXEJ , however, fell after oil prices declined. Oil and gas explorers Oil Search OSH.AX and Santos Ltd STO.AX slipped 0.9% and 1%, respectively.
Shares of the real estate developer Dexus DXS.AX rose after it struck a deal to merge an unlisted property fund with a diversified real estate investment fund run by AMP Capital AMP.AX . New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell on losses among financial and industrial stocks.