Shares in the big banks have surged at the start of trade, with investors apparently relieved that financial services royal commission had not recommended harsher measures.
ANZ was up 4.12 per cent, Commonwealth Bank up 3.71 per cent and Westpac increased 4.89 per cent.
NAB, whose chief executive Andrew Thorburn said on Tuesday he had cancelled the remainder of his two months' leave and added he was "more determined than ever" to lead the bank's response to Kenneth Hayne's report, added 2.83 per cent.
Overall the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 74.9 points, or 1.27 per cent, at 5,966.1 points at 1015 AEDT on Tuesday, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 68.8 points, or 1.15 per cent, at 6031.8.
The royal commission under Kenneth Hayne heard of bad practices in the financial services industry. Source: AAP
Mortgage brokers took a hit in early trade after the Hayne report recommended reforms to trailing commissions, with Mortgage Choice down more than 32 per cent and Australian Finance Group losing more than 30 per cent.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is set to release retail trade data on Tuesday while the Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to keep interest rates on hold yet again at its first meeting of the year.
There was a strong lead from Wall Street overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.15 per cent, the S&P 500 up 0.33 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.90 per cent.
The Aussie dollar is buying 72.22 US cents from 72.30 US cents on Monday.
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