(Updates to close) Australian shares ended higher on Friday, as...

(Updates to close)

Australian shares ended higher on Friday, as financial and tech stocks gained, but the benchmark index clocked its first monthly loss in two as COVID-19 lockdowns in China hit demand for metals while the Russia-Ukraine crisis kept global supply chains under pressure.

The S&P/ASX 200 index (xjo) ended up 1.06% at 7,423.5 points. The benchmark index had gained 1.3% on Thursday.

Miners .AXMM rose 0.4%, but logged a monthly loss for the first time in seven months on concerns over steel demand due to COVID-19 lockdowns in top metals consumer China.

Heavyweights BHP (BHP) and Rio Tinto (RIO) tumbled 7.2% and 5.2% for the month respectively.

"Investors should be prepared for this uncertainty and choppiness in markets to persist given the concerns about inflation, rates and economic growth around the world," said Kerry Craig, global market strategist at J.P. Morgan

Aussie tech stocks .AXIJ rose 2.3%, leading the gains on the benchmarks as they tracked overnight gains in Wall Street peers following strong U.S. earnings.

ASX-listed shares of Block Inc (SQ2) climbed as much as 1.1%

Australian financial stocks .AXFJ advanced 1.2%, with the "Big four" banks gaining between 0.6% and 1.4%. The market expects Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to hike interest rate to 0.25% for the first time in more than a decade in its upcoming policy meet, according to a Reuters poll.

With investors' focus on the upcoming policy meetings of the U.S Fed, the Bank of England and the RBA, they have priced-in the expected tightening of monetary policy and "we anticipate that central banks will deliver on these expectations next week", Craig added

Gold stocks .AXGD rose 1.6% on firm bullion prices as worrying U.S. economic data rekindled some interest in the safe-haven metal.

Australia's largest gold miner, Newcrest Mining (NCM) , jumped nearly 1%

In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index (nz50) closed 0.07% higher at 11,884.3 points.