News: BEN Australian shares tick up as banks rally; Fed rate hike fears linger

	  New Zealand shares hit lowest level in a month  

	  Shares of A2 Milk hit lowest level in over a month   

	  Inghams Group shares record best day in over 2 years 

(Updates to close)

Australian shares inched up on Monday, led by a rally in banking stocks which was largely offset by losses in the real estate and energy sectors, as investors remained cautious ahead of minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting.

The S&P/ASX 200 index (xjo) closed up 0.1% at 7,351.50 points. The benchmark fell 1.2% last week.

Data released last week, which pointed to a still-tight labour market, sticky inflation, robust retail sales growth and higher monthly producer prices have raised bets that the Fed will continue to hike interest rates.

Mining stocks .AXMM edged higher, with BHP Group and Rio Tinto adding 1.0% and 0.7%, respectively. The earnings for both companies are scheduled for later this week.

Financial stocks .AXFJ climbed 0.9% as the so-called "Big Four" banks added between 0.3% and 1.5%. The sub-index declined 4.3% last week.

Shares in Bendigo And Adelaide Bank (BEN) closed up 1.9% after posting higher cash earnings for the half year.

"We're seeing some value start to emerge in the banking sector after seeing a relatively big stumble last week," said Henry Jennings, Senior Analyst and portfolio manager at Marcustoday Financial Newsletter.

In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index (nz50) slipped 2.05% to 11,896.05 points, recording their worst session since June 14, 2022. The country is still reeling from the effects of Cyclone Gabrielle.

The country's central bank is set to announce its rate decision later this week.

"Inflation pressures are still intense, so it would be a real shock to the markets if it was to keep the OCR (overnight cash rate) on hold (at 50 basis points) at this meeting," said Christina Leung, principal economist at New Zealand Institute of Economic Research.

Dairy firm A2 Milk Co (ATM) fell 7.4% after warning of increased distribution costs in fiscal 2023.

Back in Sydney, Bluescope Steel Ltd (BSL) warned its second-half underlying earnings before interest and tax could nearly halve sequentially, sending its shares down 10%.

Poultry producer Inghams Group Ltd (ING) led gains on the ASX 200, settling up 11.7% after the stock was upgraded by Macquarie.