The Australian stock market posted moderate gains on Thursday, amid sluggish trading conditions ahead of a public holiday in the US. But one company that outshone the broader market by some distance was Telstra, which finished as the best performed stock among the S&P/ASX50. Telstra advanced 3.6 per cent, or 10 cents, to $2.88, rising for the fifth day in a row as market players noted the likely passage of legislation through federal parliament that would clear the way for the telco's participation in the national broadband network. Telstra was also the most traded stock by volume with 202.2 million shares changing hands, double Wednesday's turnover and about four times more than usual. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 8.7 points, or 0.19 per cent, at 4,593.40 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index had risen 10.1 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 4,683.3 points. On the ASX24, the December share price index futures contract was 11 points higher at 4,597 points, with 28,092 contracts traded.

The market opened about 0.4 per cent firmer, following a positive night on Wall Street, but gradually drifted lower throughout the trading session. The one exception among the big banks was ANZ, which rose by 0.85 per cent, or 19 cents, to $22.47 after it said an evaluation of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) would be put on hold. The decision was in response to a filing from Hana Financial Group that it planned to acquire Lone Star Fund's majority shareholding in KEB, ANZ said in a statement. Of the other banks, CBA fell 14 cents to $48.01, NAB eased 15 cents to $23.30 and Westpac ended 20 cents lower at $21.20.

The spot price of gold in Sydney was $1371.00 per ounce, down $5 from Wednesday's closing price of $1376.00 per ounce. Newcrest Mining ended up 43 cents at $40.10. In other news, GrainCorp reported a 27 per cent lift in annual net profit, but the stock closed down 74 cents, or 9.57 per cent, at $6.99. Preliminary national turnover was 2.73 billion securities worth $5.94 billion, with 639 stocks finishing up, 465 ending down and 374 closing steady.

Thin trade before the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday and a wider nervous mood undercut the Australian dollar on Thursday. Stronger than expected domestic corporate investment numbers were ignored as dealers kept their focus on the global horizon. Although capital expenditure by Australian businesses jumped a large 6.2% in the third quarter, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, economists said weaker plant and equipment spending means the near term outlook for monetary policy is unchanged. But it also suggests a much vaunted avalanche of spending by businesses in the resources sector is still waiting to be unleashed, something that could change the policy outlook next year. The Australian dollar traded at $0.9792, down from $0.9802 late Wednesday. Against the Japanese yen, the currency traded at 81.78, from 81.56.