The S&P/ASX200 rallied 75.1 points, or 0.89 per cent, to 8,541.8, as the broader Ordinaries gained 79.3 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 8,770.2.
The top-200 is within 73.4 points, or roughly 0.3 per cent, of its 8,615.2 record close reached on February 14.
The rally came after a strong Wall Street session on the back of better than expected jobs figures, and after a sluggish local GDP print of 0.2 per cent in the first quarter steeled bets of a Reserve Bank interest rate cut in July.
"When we look at the per capita GDP, down for nine of 11 quarters, everything points to the idea that we need further stimulus," IG Markets analyst Tony Sycamore told AAP.
Rates markets were pointing to an 80 per cent likelihood of a July rate cut, with Australia likely to fall short of the RBA's expected 2.1 per cent GDP growth for 2025.
"We are going in the right direction, but the bounce has tempered," Mr Sycamore said.
"There's still more work to go, and we still haven't got to the period where the uncertainty of tariffs filters through in Q2 and Q3."
Nine of 11 local sectors finished higher on Wednesday, lifted by energy (+2.3 per cent), consumer discretionary stocks (+1.4 per cent) and financials (+1.3 per cent), as the Commonwealth Bank topped $181 a share for the first time.
NAB, Westpac, ANZ and Macquarie Group all notched gains of one per cent or more.
Energy lifted on the back of an uptick in oil prices as wildfires rage in Canada, pushing Woodside 2.9 per cent higher to $22.80.
Uranium miners outperformed the sector and the broader market, after Facebook owner Meta announced a 20-year nuclear energy deal with Nasdaq-listed Constellation Energy.
The news helped Paladin Energy rally more than nine per cent to $6.47, the top-200's second best performer, as Boss Energy jumped more than seven per cent.
Zip Co took out the top spot, rocketing 13.6 per cent to $2.21, buoyed by hopes of interest rate cuts and a strong financial sector performance.
Materials rose 0.7 per cent as BHP and Fortescue recovered some recent losses, but Rio Tinto remained heavy, down 0.3 per cent, a day after data pointed to contraction in China's manufacturing sector.
Investors took profits on gold miners as risk-on sentiment dominated the local market, while gold itself held onto this week's gains to trade at $US3,381 ($A5,230) an ounce.
In other news, Virgin Australia is set to return to the ASX, as owner Bain Capital prepares for a $685 million initial public offering.
The Australian dollar is buying 64.63 US cents, flat with Tuesday at 5pm, with the currency trading within two cent range for more than a month.
ON THE ASX:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index finished Wednesday 75.1 points higher, up 0.89 per cent to 8,541.8
* The broader All Ordinaries rose 79.3 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 8,770.2
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 64.63 US cents, from 64.63 US cents on Tuesday at 5pm
* 92.99 Japanese yen, from 92.36 Japanese yen
* 56.80 Euro cents, from 56.55 Euro cents
* 47.78 British pence, from 47.76 pence
* 107.65 NZ cents, from 107.68 NZ cents
9°C