The Australian sharemarket gained ground to be nearly one per cent higher by noon (AEDT) on the back of a rally in healthcare shares and gains in consumer and financial stocks.
The benchmark S & P/ASX200 index was up 54.1 points, or 0.95 per cent by midday (AEDT), to 5,762.1 points.
The broader All Ordinaries index was up 50.3 points, or 0.87 per cent at 5,804.2 points.
Healthcare-focused stocks rallied unexpectedly after US politicians delayed a vote on a healthcare bill seen as President Donald Trump’s first policy test. The delay in the Congressional vote on the replacement for Obamacare pulled down stocks on Wall Street overnight.
The local healthcare rally was led by CSL, Cochlear, Ramsay Healthcare, and Blackmores with all of them rising more than one per cent.
All the four major banks, mining majors BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, as well as consumer-focused stocks Caltex, Wesfarmers and Woolworths were also trading in the green.
Gold stocks turned weaker as the renewed confidence helped local investors move out of positions in safe-haven assets.
Meanwhile, the Australian dollar has improved slightly but is still lower against its US counterpart, which continued to be firm ahead of the crucial US healthcare vote.
AAP
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