The Australian sharemarket has staged a moderate recovery to buck a negative lead from the US overnight.
After spending three consecutive days in the red, stocks were up two-thirds of a per cent soon after the open.
This is despite Wall Street having dipped on softer-than-expected payrolls data.
The world’s biggest economy added 175,000 private-sector jobs in January, slowing from the 227,000 increase in December, payrolls firm ADP reported.
Analysts had forecast the addition of 178,000 net new jobs last month.
IG market strategist Stan Shamu said despite the local market’s solid start sentiment among investors remains mixed.
“There’s still a lot of scepticism in the investment community that the Australian market has turned the corner,” he said.
“We really need to see some big companies deliver on earnings for us to get a positive kick on that front.”
Gaming group Tabcorp fell seven cents at $3.31 despite news it lifted its first-half profit slightly, to $74.6 million up from $72.9 million a year ago.
The market’s heavyweight industries, banks and resources, led the positive figures.
National Australia Bank gained 34 cent to $34.48, ANZ added 30 cents to $29.32, Commonwealth Bank increased 77 cents to $73.26 while Westpac was up 38 cents at $30.69.
BHP Billiton climbed 40 cents to $35.69, Rio Tinto surged 75 cents to $65.34 and Fortescue added 14 cents $5.40.
In the retail sector, Woolworths had gained 36 cents at $34.28 before the release of its second-quarter sales results at midday.
Wesfarmers added three cents at $41.35.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics will also release the retail trade figures for the December quarter and international trade in goods and services data for December.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 0.03 per cent while the broad-based S&P 500 was 0.2 per cent lower.
KEY FACTS
* At 1040 AEDT on Thursday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index had gained 34.7 points, or 0.68 per cent, to 5,105 points.
* The broader All Ordinaries index had added 32.8 points, or 0.64 per cent, at 5,121.5 points.
* The March share price index futures contract was up 31 points at 5,049 points, with 10,927 contracts traded.
* National turnover was 320.4 million securities worth $674.1 million.