AU Evening Wrap: Australia Shares Gain 0.9%, Complete Best Week Since July

$S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ closed 0.9% higher at 7442.7, completing its largest weekly gain since July. While real-estate stocks pulled back Friday following strong gains a day earlier, shares of commodity and financial companies lifted the benchmark index to a sixth consecutive daily gain.

Lithium stocks jumped, while large-cap iron-ore miners $Fortescue Ltd (FMG.AU)$, $Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO.AU)$ and $BHP Group Ltd (BHP.AU)$ added between 1.4% and 2.4%. The energy sector rose 1.9% amid higher oil prices, while major banks $CommBank (CBA.AU)$, $National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB.AU)$, $Westpac Banking Corp (WBC.AU)$ and $ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ANZ.AU)$ put on between 0.5% and 1.2% amid hopes that global interest rates have hit a cyclical peak.