News: RIO Australia shares climb on China stimulus hopes, NZ stocks rise

MELBOURNE/WELLINGTON, March 1 (Reuters)- - Australian shares rose 0.4 percent on Tuesday shored up by the big banks and miners, after disappointing Chinese manufacturing data stoked hopes that Beijing would take further steps to boost growth. New Zealand shares rose 0.3 percent.

The S&P/ASX 200 index (xjo) rose 20.4 points to 4,901.3 as of 0235 GMT.

The top three banks were all up around 0.9 percent, while Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) rose 2 percent.

Among the miners, BHP Billiton (BHP) and Rio Tinto (RIO) both rose more than 2 percent, while Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) and Whitehaven Coal (WHC) rose 5 percent, with investors betting China's efforts to boost growth would lift demand for iron ore, coal and metals.

Gold miners shone after bullion prices touched a four-year high. Newcrest Mining (NCM) jumped 5.9 percent.

Overall gains were capped as several companies traded without rights to their dividends, including heavyweight Telstra Corp (TLS), down 4.5 percent, and Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (BEN) and Bega Cheese (BGA), both down more than 5 percent.

The market's biggest loser was law firm Slater and Gordon (SGH), which plunged 35 percent to a record low of A$0.375. It has lost over half its value since reporting a half-year loss on Monday and flagging it was in restructuring talks with its lenders.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index (nz50) rose 21.38 points to 6,252.25, tracking a positive lead from Wall Street.

The biggest gainers were Orion Health Group (OHE), which added 3.6 percent and Auckland Airport (AIA), up 2.6 percent.

Fletcher Building (FBU), down 2.5 percent, was the biggest loser.