The S&P/ASX200 shrugged off a midday wobble to charge higher by 64.8 points, or 0.73 per cent, to a best-ever close of 8,938.6, a 1.4 per cent gain for the week..
The broader all Ordinaries surged 63 points higher, up 0.69 per cent, to 9,212.1, the best close for Australia's top 500 stocks now with a combined value of more than $2.9 trillion.
Fading worst-case tariff expectations, a Reserve Bank interest rate cut, record highs on Wall St and generally positive local earnings had helped deliver the historic week, CommSec market analyst Steven Daghlian said.Â
"It's a trend that just highlights how enthusiastic markets are at the moment, but there's still tests ahead in the coming weeks," he told AAP.
"We're getting close to 9000 (points), and sometimes when we get close to those really big milestones you can see markets getting a little nervous, and the next two weeks will be the busiest of the reporting season."
Nine of 11 local sectors finished higher, led by 1.1 per cent gains in financials, mining stocks and the energy sector.
All big four banks finished in the green, Westpac up more than eight per cent in two days to $36.18, while CBA snapped its post-earnings slump to reclaim 0.6 per cent to $168.17.
Large cap miners forged a path for the materials sector, with BHP, Fortescue and Rio Tinto all up more than 1.1 per cent after weak economic figures out of China prompted hopes of future stimulus.
Gold miners edged higher as the Australian dollar lost ground against the greenback, while gold futures hovered at August lows of $US3,390 ($A5,210) an ounce.
Energy stocks also outperformed the broader market, thanks to a more than seven per cent rally in Ampol shares after it confirmed a $1.1 billion buyout of EG Group's Australian service station portfolio.
Cochlear finished the day one per cent higher to $309.03 per share, shaking off an early morning sell-off after its $392 million underlying net profit underwhelmed investors.
As local equities held tightly onto their records this week, cryptocurrency Bitcoin has slumped more than four per cent after breaching $US124,400 ($A191,150) for the first time on Thursday.
Australian companies will hand down more results in the next two weeks than any other fortnight of the year, which had the potential to move markets, Mr Daghlian said.
Sector giants such as BHP, Woodside, Goodman Group and CSL are among the names reporting to shareholders next week.
"And then you've got the US-Russia talks in Alaska as well, which will get a bit of attention if there are any surprises," he told AAP.
The Aussie dollar finished the week slightly weaker against the greenback to buy 65.07 US cents, down from 65.37 US cents on Thursday at 5pm.
ON THE ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 rose 64.8 points on Friday, or 0.73 per cent, to 8,938.6
* The broader All Ordinaries jumped 63 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 9,212.1
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 65.07 US cents, from 65.37 US cents on Thursday
* 95.723 Japanese yen, from 95.75 Japanese yen
* 55.75 euro cents, from 55.94 euro cents
* 48.01 British pence, from 48.15 British pence
* 109.87 NZ cents, from 109.74 NZ cents
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