By Anusha Ravindranath
Jan 26 (Reuters) - New Zealand shares jumped to its highest in more than three months on Thursday following an eventful session on Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit its historic 20,000 mark for the first time.
The Australian stock market .AXJO was closed for Australia Day.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 rose 0.23 percent, or 16.57 points, to 7,107.48 at 2249 GMT. The index gained as much as 0.4 percent.
Wall Street stood tall on Wednesday as strong earnings and President Donald Trump's pro-growth initiatives reignited a post-election rally. .N
Trump made several business-friendly decisions since taking office on Friday, including clearing the path for the construction of two oil pipelines to boost the energy industry. the New Zealand dollar firmed after data showed inflation was back in the central bank's target range for the first time in two years. think it is the big offshore lead that is the driving the NZ market today," said Forsyth Barr investment advisor Dave Schaper, adding that the gain in the NZ dollar was a reflection that the economy was doing well.
Consumer stocks and banks were the major gainers on the NZ benchmark index. The top performer a2 Milk Company Ltd ATM.NZ rose 1.8 percent while shares of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd ANZ.NZ was up 1.08 percent.