Late gains pushed the Australian share market to close in positive territory after range-bound trading that ignored an upbeat assesment of the economy by the central bank. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed up 13.1 points, or 0.27 per cent, at 4,797.2 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index rose 9.7 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 4,809.1 points. Minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) March 2 board meeting, released on Tuesday, showed the central bank raised the cash rate after data suggested the economy might be growing at, or close to, trend. The big banks were mixed, with Commonwealth Bank finishing up eight cents to $55.68, ANZ 13 cents higher at $24.15, and Westpac 28 cents stronger at $26.91. National Australia Bank was eight cents lower at $26.75 and Macquarie Group fell 25 cents to $48.64.

Among the major miners, BHP Billiton was up 18 cents to $42.75 and rival Rio Tinto gained 12 cents to $75.50. Rio Tinto Ltd on Tuesday forecast that China's demand for key commodities will grow exponentially during the next 15 years, with India then taking over to drive further demand. The gold miners were mixed, with Lihir Gold rising nine cents to $3.06and Newcrest falling 17 cents to $33.52. The local spot price of gold was $1,111.80 up $7.00 on Monday's closing price of $1,104.80 per ounce. CBH Resources finished up 1.5 cents, or 8.82 per cent, amid news its major shareholder, Toho Zinc, wants to take up to a 49.9 stake in the company. Energy stocks had a poor day after oil prices fell below $US81 a barrel on Monday in Asia. Woodside Petroleum was down 23 cents to $44.76 and Oil Search off two cents to $5.66. Gas giant Santos was off five cents to $14.13, while Origin Energy fell 13 cents to $16.32.

Shares in Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd ended the day up 1.5 cents, or 2.94 per cent higher, at 52.5 cents after it announced renegotiated sale terms with Arrow Energy for its Fisherman's Landing project. Telstra performed strongly after the federal government struggled to pass a bill that would split the company. Shares in the telco finished up seven cents, or 2.3 per cent, to $3.11. Media stocks were mixed with News Corp gaining 15 cents to $18.16 and its non-voting scrip seven cents stronger at $15.34. Fairfax fell two cents to $1.76 and Consolidated Media put on three cents to $3.20. Coles owner Wesfarmers fell 15 cents to $31.55 and rival Woolworths gained seven cents to $28.28.

Myer Holdings was steady at $3.51, David Jones gained three cents to $5.07 and Harvey Norman dropped four cents to $3.77. Shares in drug developer Acrux rose five cents to $2.43 after it struck an agreement with a pharmaceutical firm to commercialise its underarm testosterone solution, Axiron. The top-traded stock by volume was energy company Samson Oil and Gas Ltd, with 98.27 million shares worth $3.24 million changing hands. Its shares were down 0.3 cents, or 8.82 per cent, at 3.1 cents. Preliminary national turnover was 2.38 billion shares worth $5.28 billion, with 447 stocks up, 573 down and 381 unchanged.

The Australian dollar was marginally higher Tuesday in quiet trade which is not expected to liven up much until the outcome of the Federal Reserve's monthly policy meeting later. Although the Fed is not expected to hike its key interest rate, analysts say any move to rein in some of the extraordinary policy measures taken during the financial crisis will send a strong confidence signal and point to more policy tightening down the road, boosting the U.S. dollar in the process. The Australian dollar was quoted at $0.9155, up from $0.9144 late Monday. Against the Japanese yen, the Australian dollar was at 82.47, down from 82.855. The currency fell briefly on minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia's March meeting, which some dealers felt were less forthright in painting a picture for more rate hikes, prompting an unwind of long positions.