Aug. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index gained, led by oil stocks such as Woodside Petroleum Ltd. after crude oil prices rose to a record, boosting earnings.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index added 9.70, or 0.2 percent, to 4387.0 as of 11:01 a.m. in Sydney. About five stocks rose for every four that declined. The benchmark is less than a point from its record close, set July 29.

New Zealand's NZX 50 Index fell 0.2 percent to 3341.66 as of 1:01 p.m. in Wellington. Waste Management New Zealand Ltd., the country's biggest waste collection and disposal business, dropped.

Woodside, Australia's second-biggest oil producer, added 89 cents, or 2.9 percent, to A$31.30.

The company said it plans to develop a liquefied natural gas project in Western Australia to take advantage of forecast strong demand for the fuel early next decade.

Santos Ltd., the nation's third-biggest oil producer, gained 15 cents, or 1.4 percent, to A$10.95. BHP Billiton, which gets about a fifth of its earnings from oil, rose 15 cents, or 0.8 percent, to A$19.76.

Crude oil today rose as high as $62.67 a barrel, a record, in after-hours electronic trading in New York on speculation U.S. refiners will strain to meet second-half fuel demand as growth in the nation's economy accelerates. Oil was recently at $62.59.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index's futures contract for September rose 0.2 percent to 4362. The broader All Ordinaries Index added 0.3 percent to 4344.10.

The following shares also rose or fell. The stock symbols are in brackets after the company names.

Australian stocks:

U.S.-related stocks: Rinker Group Ltd. (RIN AU), the biggest supplier of cement blocks in the U.S., slid 16 cents, or 1 percent, to A$14.87. Westfield Group (WDC AU), the world's biggest owner of shopping malls by market value, dropped 18 cents, or 1 percent, to A$17.89.

U.S. stocks fell on Friday on concern the Fed will raise borrowing costs through the end of the year after a government employment report signaled inflation may be picking up.

Hills Industries Ltd. (HIL AU), a diversified manufacturer, rose 5 cents, or 1.1 percent, to A$4.56. The stock was raised to ``outperform'' from ``market perform'' by Goldman Sachs JBWere Pty in Melbourne on potential increases in dividend payouts in fiscal 2006 and 2007.

Mosaic Oil NL (MOS AU), an Australian oil and gas explorer, climbed 3 cents, or 16 percent, to 22 cents. The company said it's in confidential talks with a potential investor that made an unsolicited approach to the company. The statement didn't give any details on the potential investor.

Newcrest Mining Ltd. (NCM AU), Australia's biggest gold miner, added 12 cents, or 0.7 percent, to A$17.16. Denver-based Newmont Mining Corp., the world's biggest gold miner, said it's interested in buying partner Newcrest's stake in the planned A$1 billion ($769 million) Boddington gold mine in Western Australia.

New Zealand:

Waste Management New Zealand Ltd. (WAM NZ), the country's biggest waste collection and disposal business, fell 23 cents, or 3.4 percent, to NZ$6.55 after the company said profit growth will slow to 17 percent in 2005 from 38 percent a year ago.

To contact the reporter for this story: Stuart Kelly in Sydney skelly22@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: August 7, 2005 21:17 EDT