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By Ayushman Ojha

Nov 7 (Reuters) -Australian shares ended slightly higher after a volatile session on Thursday, as gains in energy stocks and financials outweighed a slump in gold shares, while the country's central bank assessed the implications of Donald Trump's win in the U.S. presidential election.

The S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO rose 0.3% to 8,226.3 at close, after falling as much as 0.6% earlier in the day. The benchmark had gained 0.8% on Wednesday.

Republican Trump won the 2024 U.S. presidential election in a stunning comeback,sending equities soaring across the globe. .N

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Michele Bullock said it was hard to judge the inflation implications of the U.S. election for Australia at this stage and that the central bank has not yet changed its outlook for inflation.

The RBA held key rates steady earlier this week, cautioning that the policy will have to stay restrictive for some time, while a 25-basis-point U.S. rate cut is expected later in the day.

"The RBA hasn't been particularly keen to follow the lead of the other central banks because they've got a problem still with inflation and the labour market has been particularly tight," Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG Australia, said.

In Sydney, gold stocks .AXGD slid 6.2% to their lowest since June 2022, as bullion prices hit a three-week low on a firmer U.S. dollar.

However, losses on the broader benchmark were capped by energy shares .AXEJ jumping 2.3% as oil prices gained after a sell-off triggered by the U.S. election.

Financials .AXFJ were 0.8% higher, with two of the "Big Four" banks gaining more than 1%.

The National Australia Bank NAB.AX pared lossesto end 0.2% higher after reporting an 8.1% drop in annual cash profit.

Westpac WBC.AX dropped 2.3% on trading ex-dividend.

The real estate index .AXRE declined 2.1%.

Trump's policies are expected to be inflationary, which could mean rates in Australia staying elevated.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 was 0.6% lower at 12,581.38.

Reporting by Ayushman Ojha; Editing by Sumana Nandy

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