Australia's S&P/ASX200 was little changed at 4,396.40 as of 10:41 a.m. in Sydney. New Zealand's NZX 50 Index was little changed at 3,005.38 in Wellington.

Mining shares: Copper futures in New York rallied as much as 0.4 percent to $3.0650 a pound before trading little changed at $3.05 at 8:12 a.m. Melbourne time. The September-delivery contract rose 1.3 percent on July 9 and rallied 4.7 percent last week.

The following were among the most active shares in the S&P/ASX200 market today:

BHP Billiton (BHP AU), the world's largest mining company, rose 0.1 percent to A$38.46 in Sydney.

A point of contention for BHP is its $20 billion Olympic Dam expansion that faces delays as its protracted environmental assessment and the cost are being re-assessed, the Australian Financial Review reported, citing Mitch Williams, the South Australian opposition party's mining spokesman.

Rio Tinto Group (RIO AU), the world's third-largest mining company, gained 0.9 percent to A$68.69.

Rio Tinto is inviting bids to its Chapudi coal exploration assets in South Africa, the Independent newspaper on Sunday reported.

Oil companies: Crude oil for August delivery rose as much as 0.3 percent to $76.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $76.27 at 8:25 a.m. in Sydney.

Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL AU), Australia's second- largest oil and gas producer, fell 0.6 percent to A$42.28. Rival energy oil and gas fields developer Santos Ltd. (STO AU) declined 0.1 percent to A$13.99.

Australia's biggest gold producer Newcrest Mining Ltd. (NCM AU) increased 0.9 percent to A$34.60. Rival Eldorado Gold Corp. (EAU AU) rose 4.7 percent to A$19.55. St. Barbara Ltd. (SBM AU) climbed 3.1 percent to 33.5 Australian cents.

Discovery Metals Ltd. (DML AU) dropped 0.8 percent to 64 Australian cents. The Australian mining company that counts billionaire investor George Soros among its shareholders was reported by the Independent on Sunday to raise $150 million through loans and share sales this year to develop a copper mine in Botswana.

Sigma Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (SIP AU) declined 1.1 percent to 45 Australian cents.

Tabcorp. Holdings Ltd. (TAH AU) fell 0.2 percent to A$6.46.