The Australian share market rose slightly in mixed trading before the weekend, with gains in financials, consumer staples and materials offsetting falls in telco, utilities, industrials and energy stocks Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 7.6 points, or 0.2%, at 4508.1 after hitting a three-day low of 4490.2. Share trading volumes were light, after allowing for activity generated by Thursday's expiry of June equity options contracts. It is the first weekly rise in the past five weeks for the index, which hit a nine-month low of 4451.7 on Monday. Options related selling restrained the index until early Friday afternoon, at which point the market started to factor in Friday's gains in Asian share markets.

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China's Shanghai index was up 1.9% late Friday, breaking a downtrend line drawn from the April peak, after China's Premier Wen said China has successfully reined in price pressures. Also, helping market sentiment, Wall Street bounced intraday Thursday after Greece agreed to an austerity package with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund that could clear the way for a new bailout loan if Greece's parliament approves the measures, an official with knowledge of the talks told Dow Jones Newswires. The Australian share market has been hampered by lingering uncertainty about Greece, as well as a lack of fresh buying interest before the June 30 financial year end.

The country's big four banks all finished higher with the largest, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, ending up 1.3% at $51.13, while the big resources companies also closed up. BHP Billiton rose 0.7% to $42.34 and Rio Tinto rose 0.5% to $80.40. Consumer staples did well too with Woolworths up 1% at $27.25 and Wesfarmers up 1.2% at $31.18. Telstra fell 2.7% to $2.88 after Moody's placed it on review for a possible credit rating downgrade and Morgan Stanley cut its recommendation to Equalweight, amid disappointment with the terms of its agreement with the government on the planned national broadband network. Woodside Petroleum fell 0.5% to $40.20 after crude oil prices fell when the International Energy Agency said it would release 60 million barrels from strategic reserves to ease prices.

The Australian dollar was slightly lower late Friday but finding strong support on any downward moves as traders digested news that Greece's debt woes were a step closer toward resolution. Greece agreed to an austerity package with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund through 2014 that could clear the way for a new bailout loan, sources close to the matter told Dow Jones Newswires. Also Friday, the central bank reaffirmed its view that interest rates will need to rise at some point if its upbeat view on the global and domestic economy pans out. Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor Phil Lowe told an audience in Adelaide that policy-makers are encountering a challenging environment, but the bank's main goal is to ensure low and stable inflation. The Australian dollar was at $1.0541, down from $1.0551 late Thursday. Against the Japanese yen, the Australian dollar was at 84.79, down from 84.86.

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