Aussies shares ended the week on a very positive note, despite the negative lead from international markets last night.

US stocks rallied in the final hour of trading as optimism for possible aid to debt-strapped European countries cut into losses that followed another weak round of US economic data and the Supreme Court’s health-care decision.

The US optimism turned out to be well placed.

During the Australian session the EU leaders announced an agreement to use the bloc’s permanent bailout fund to recapitalise struggling banks directly.

The positive news out of Europe helped most sectors finished strongly in the green, with materials and industrials the standout performers.

Consumer Staples and IT were the only segments to end the day in the red.

The big four banks all advanced, with ANZ the clear best performer, adding 2.5%.

The mining majors gained ground after the European news sparked life into commodity prices. BHP and Rio Tinto jumped 2.3% and 2.4% respectively.

St Barbara (-16.5%) and Allied Gold Mining (+60.3%) announced that they plan to merge to create a combined group with a market value of around $1 billion.

David Jones jumped 14.6% after announcing that it has received an unsolicited takeover approach from UK-based EB Private Equity.

The ASX 200 climbed 50 points (+1.2%) to settle at 4095.

Today's gains helped the market finish up 1.1% for the week.

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Evening Market Analysis: Strong Finish is a post from: Australian Stock Report Market Pulse Blog