SYDNEY, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Australian market closed marginally higher on Thursday, with support for the financial sector keeping the index above the line.
At 1030 AEST, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was up 6.10 points or 0.11 percent at 5,670.40, while the broader All Ordinaries index gained 6.00 points or 0.10 percent at 5,731.50.
Banking sector stocks were the strongest performers on the market on Thursday, however energy and mining stocks suffered big losses.
In the financial space, Australia's big banks were mostly firmer with the Commonwealth Bank up (0.33 percent), Westpac Bank up (0.53 percent), National Australia Bank up (0.48 percent) and ANZ down (0.30 percent).
Mining stocks slumped with BHP down (1.08 percent), Rio Tinto down (1.89 percent), Fortescue Metals down (3.17 percent) and Newcrest Mining down (2.04 percent).
The country's oil and gas producers also struggled with Woodside Petroleum down (1.39 percent), Santos down (1.45 percent) and Oil Search down (0.56 percent).
Australia's largest supermarket chains both sank further with Wesfarmers down (0.93 percent) and Woolworths down (0.50 percent).
Telecommunications giant Telstra was up (0.29 percent), the national carrier Qantas slipped (0.69 percent) and biomedical firm CSL surged (1.14 percent).
