Australia stocks rise as investors assess central bank minutes; New Zealand inflation hits 2-year low

Australia stocks gained as investors assessed minutes from its central bank’s last policy meeting, while the New Zealand dollar weakened following an inflation reading, the first since the elections over the weekend. New Zealand’s inflation rate hit a two-year low, coming in at 5.6% in the third quarter and down from 6% in the previous quarter. The minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia detailed the central bank’s rationale for holding its benchmark lending rates at 4.1% during its October monetary policy meeting, the fourth straight month that it has kept rates unchanged. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.49%, while the kiwi dollar weakened 0.4%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rebounded and gained 1.08%, while the Topix advanced 0.79%. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.67% at open, and the Kosdaq saw a larger gain of 1.64%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index inched up 0.66%, while mainland Chinese markets were in negative territory, with the CSI 300 down marginally. Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes gained, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average higher by 0.93% and marking its best day since September. The S&P 500 climbed 1.06%, while the Nasdaq Composite added 1.2%.