The Australian stock market closed in the black following gains in the mining sector on the back of record copper prices overnight.
Insurance stocks rebounded amid relief that the impact of Cyclone Yasi was less devastating than expected.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 24.1 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 4,820.6 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index added 21.4 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 4,919.3 points.
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On the ASX 24 at 1615 AEDT, the March share price index futures contract was 24 points higher at 4,787 points, with 25,226 contracts traded.
EL&C Baillieu Stockbroking director Richard Morrow said there was good support again for the miners, particularly copper stocks after the metal surged to an all-time high.
Reports from the UK said the threat of Cyclone Yasi on Queensland's copper operations helped push the price higher.
Copper miner Equinox Minerals gained ground after it provided an update on the expansion strategy for its Lumwana mine in Zambia.
Equinox shares finished up 47 cents, or 7.59 per cent, at $6.66.
BHP Billiton was up 62 cents, or 1.36 per cent, at $46.32, Rio Tinto advanced 38 cents to $86.20 and Fortescue Metals inched one cent higher to $6.63.
Mr Morrow said BHP Billiton's rise alone put eight points on the index.
Insurance Australia Group was up 11 cents, or 3.02 per cent, at $3.75 and Suncorp Group gained 24 cents, or 2.92 per cent, to $8.45.
QBE Insurance Group entered a trading halt and last traded at $16.94, pending a statement following investor speculation over recent heavy rain and flooding, upcoming full year results.
"Property stocks are firmer than expected, with quite a bit of support for REITs (real estate investment trusts)," Mr Morrow said.
Highlights in this sector included GPT, up 10 cents, or 3.39 per cent, at $3.05, and Stockland, up seven cents, or 1.94 per cent, at $3.67.
Among financial stocks, National Australia Bank was steady at $24.64, ANZ put on 19 cents to $23.94, Commonwealth Bank was 14 cents firmer at $52.59 and Westpac advanced 18 cents to $23.28.
The media sector was largely higher.
News Corp was up 58 cents, or 3.44 per cent, at $17.44 while its non-voting scrip was 41 cents, or 2.66 per cent, higher at $15.80.
News Corp on Thursday reiterated its earnings guidance for the current year and confirmed it was considering offloading its struggling social networking website, MySpace.
Making headlines on Thursday, explosives giant Orica said Queensland floods would shave its pre-tax earnings for the four months to the end of January by between $20 and $30 million.
Shares in Orica were up 26 cents at $25.51.
Gambling giant Tabcorp Holdings was up 21 cents at $7.11 after posting a 2.9 per cent rise in net profit for its first half.
The spot price of gold in Sydney at 1620 AEDT was $US1,333.40 per ounce, down $US6.50 from Wednesday's closing price of $US1,339.90.
Gold miner Newcrest was down 31 cents at $36.86.
The most traded stock by volume was renewable energy company WHL Energy, with 90.48 million securities changing hands at a total value of $3.17 million.
WHL Energy's share price rose 0.2 cent, or 6.06 per cent, to 3.5 cents.
Preliminary national turnover was 2.62 billion securities worth $4.97 billion, with 611 stocks up, 539 down and 376 unchanged.
