Brexit fallout: Australian shares higher as investors seek bargains

The share market has closed higher as investors sought bargains after heavy selling sparked by concerns about the global economic fallout of Britain leaving the European Union.

Stock-ASX Source: AAP

Bargain-seeking investors have lifted the share market following the heavy selling sparked by concerns about the global economic fallout of Britain leaving the European Union.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.77 per cent, led by financial, mining and energy stocks, mirroring gains made on markets in the UK, Europe and US.

Commsec market analyst Steven Daghlian said 10 of the 12 sectors on the local market made gains.

Australian companies with UK operations, including BT Investment and Henderson, recovered some of their recent losses, Mr Daghlian said.

"The Aussie market has been quite resilient compared to the US markets, the UK and in particularly Europe, where the losses have been most substantial," he said.

But volatility is expected to continue in the coming weeks given the uncertainty surrounding Britain's exit from the EU, Mr Daghlian said.

Investment bank Macquarie Group was the biggest gainer among the nation's 20 largest companies, adding 74 cents to $68.65.

ANZ jumped 31 cents to $23.60, Westpac gained 28 cents to $28.80, Commonwealth Bank added 36 cents to $73.46 and National Australia Bank was 11 cents stronger at $24.74. BT added 43 cents to $8.12 while Henderson gained two cents to $3.72.

Mining giant Rio Tinto jumped 63 cents to $44.83 and BHP Billiton gained 27 cents to $18.30.

The resources sector was boosted by oil price gains on possibly supply outages and drawdowns in crude. But bucking the broader market were gold miners, as gold prices fell as investors sought out bargains on equity markets.

Newcrest Mining slipped four cents to $23.51 and Evolution Mining fell six cents to $2.38.

Key facts:

* At 1630 AEST, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was up 39.1 points, or 0.77 per cent, at 5,142.4 points.

* The broader All Ordinaries index was up 41.3 points, or 0.8 per cent, at 5,221 points.

* The September share price index futures contract was up 49 points at 5,093 points, with 40,369 contracts traded.

* National turnover was 2.77 billion securities traded, worth $6.44 billion.