Gains in mining and energy shares helped offset weakness in financial stocks, with the benchark index closing barely higher.

The Australian share market has finished broadly flat, as gains in energy and mining companies were offset by financial and health care stocks.

The Australian share market rose slightly as financial and resource companies found support among investors as energy companies lost ground.

The share market has had a soft end to the week as investors practice caution ahead of the release of important US jobs numbers.

The share market has closed higher on the back of significant rallies by energy, resource and consumer staple stocks.

The share market has fallen 0.6 per cent, weighed down by falls in the materials and industrial sectors, as expectations of US Fed rate rise build.