Australian shares 2.35% higher at 2pm today

Australian shares were higher at noon, building on gains from early trade, with the materials and financials sectors leading the market.
At 1200 AEST, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 96 points, or 2.35 per cent, at 4,171.30.  Australian stocks extended early gains, bouncing off a one-month low, as investors snatched up cheap miners and banks after Wall Street fell less than feared.

Despite momentary relief that the Australian economy had returned to growth, with gross domestic product (GDP) up 1.2 per cent in the June quarter, after suffering a downturn in the previous quarter because of the floods and cyclones over the summer, investors were still relying on news from offshore markets.