Australian equities climbed 84 points or nearly 1.0% to 8,878 on Thursday morning session, extending strong gains from the prior day following record closing highs on Wall Street Wednesday amid a potential agreement between the U.S. and Iran to end the Middle East conflict. Local markets held their highest level in two weeks, with nearly all major sectors advancing, led by process industries, non-energy minerals, consumer durables and non-durables, and transport. However, strength was capped by vigilance ahead of Australia's trade data for March later today after February saw a rise in exports and a fall in imports. Meanwhile, inflation worries persisted after the central bank warned that higher fuel costs from the Middle East conflict risk second-round inflation effects. Three of the big four lenders rose between 1% and 2%. Other standouts were BHP Group (3.6%), Fortescue (2.3%), Evolution Mining (4.1%), and South32 Ltd. (3.5%).