News: SIG Australia shares close higher after US CPI, domestic job data

	  Australian shares snap 2 session losing streak  

	  Financials up 0.4%  

	  Sigma Healthcare shares down as much as 10.8% 

(Updates to close)

June 13 (Reuters) - Australian shares closed higher on Thursday supported by banking and healthcare stocks, as investors digested a benign U.S. inflation print and a faster-than-expected growth in domestic employment ahead of the local central bank meeting next week.

The S&P/ASX 200 index (xjo) rose 0.4% to 77,49.7 points, snapping a two-session losing streak.

Australian job data for May is unlikely to move the needle much on rate cuts, with markets expecting the easing cycle to start only in the second quarter of next year.

Employment for May exceeded expectations, with the jobless rate also dipping, indicating that the labour market remained resilient. However, the report is not expected to influence the central bank's policy on interest rates.

Meanwhile, across the Pacific the Fed left its rates unchanged and also stuck to its forecast for just one rate cut in 2024, despite cooling inflation, watering down hopes for a faster easing in rate policy around the globe.

However, local analysts are of opinion that the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) decision on its interest rate cycle at its two-day monetary policy meeting next week is unlikely to change to an earlier rate cut after the data.

"I don’t believe the RBA will move in either direction before the Fed eventually moves," Brad Smoling, managing director at Smoling Stockbroking.

"RBA did not raise rates like most developed nations and has much lower unemployment rate and much higher inflation rate. RBA will struggle to justify a rate cut in the short term. We expect them to remain on hold for a while yet," Mathan Somasundaram Founder and CEO at Deep Data Analytics said.

In Sydney, rate-sensitive financial stocks .AXFJ closed 0.4% higher, with three of the "Big Four" banks gaining between 0.5% and 1%. Bucking the trend, ANZ Group (ANZ) ended the day's trade down 0.1%.

The healthcare sub-index .AXHJ advanced 1.6% while Real-estate stocks .AXRE were also up 1.2%.

Energy stocks .AXEJ reversed their trajectory to close 0.6% lower before gaining as much as 1.2% in day's trade.

Miners .AXMM were also down 0.6%. In company news, Sigma Healthcare's (SIG) proposed merger with Chemist Warehouse Group to form an A$8.8 billion entity came under regulatory scrutiny over competition concerns, sending the firm's shares down as much as 10.8% to its lowest since late February.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 index (nz50) snapped a five-session losing streak to close 1.1% higher at 11,872.64points.