ASX 200 closes up; Bega dives 10%

Australian shares rally to close up  0.3%, tracking gains in the oil price. Prime Media investors gives nod to $132m takeover, Bega Cheese warns on earnings and Centuria buys Heritage Lifecare for $291m.

Australian shares look set to climb at the open, tracking a rally on Wall Street after better economic data. Picture: Paull Miller/AAP Image

Welcome to the Trading Day blog for Thursday, December 23. ASX closed up 0.3% amid solid gains in offshore markets and higher oil prices. Bega shares tumbled after profit warning, while Magellan rebounded after the chairman reassures investors.

The benchmark ASX200 index closed up 0.3% at 7,387.60 after hitting an eight-day high of 7404.2 in early trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.7 per cent, the S&P 500 gained 1 per cent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq finished 1.2 per cent higher.

The US Nymex crude price climbed 0.3 per cent to $US72.95 a barrel, while Iron ore traded 1 per cent lower to $US122.6 a tonne.