Australian shares rose on Thursday as hopes increased that a deal to resolve the conflict in the Middle East was nearing.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 1.47%, or 125.10 points, to close at 8,621.70.
Brent crude oil futures fell to trade around $105 per barrel after US President Donald Trump said the country was in the final stages of talks with Iran.
On the domestic front, Australia's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 4.5% in April, up from 4.3% in March, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed.
Australia's private sector slipped back into contraction in May as output, demand, and business sentiment weakened amid persistent inflation pressures and geopolitical disruption, according to a survey by S&P Global. The Flash Australia PMI Composite Output Index fell to 47.8 in May from 50.4 in April, signaling a moderate contraction in activity.
In company news, Zip Co (ASX:ZIP) said it will continue to operate using the Zip brand in Australia after a settlement with mortgage lender Firstmac. As part of the deal, the company will acquire the registered trademark number 1021128 for Zip, allowing it to continue using the name Zip in Australia for its products and services.
Tower (ASX:TWR, NZE:TWR) reported fiscal first-half earnings of NZ$0.066 per share, down from NZ$0.13 a year earlier. Gross written premium for the six months ended March 31 was NZ$300.8 million, compared with NZ$297 million a year earlier.
Lastly, IperionX (ASX:IPX) completed the site acceptance and commissioning of its 300-ton six-axis SACMI powder metallurgy press at its Titanium manufacturing campus in Virginia, U.S. The facility provides higher compaction force, multi-axis movement, improved repeatability, and enhanced geometry control in comparison with conventional uniaxial pressing systems. Its shares fell 11% on market close.