SYDNEY — Charter Hall Group shares jumped more than 6% on Wednesday, leading a sharp rebound in Australian real estate stocks as investors bet the Reserve Bank of Australia may be nearing the end of its aggressive interest rate hiking cycle.

The property investment and funds management group's stapled securities rose 1.14 Australian dollars, or 6.43%, to 18.86 Australian dollars, placing the company among the strongest performers on the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index.

The rally marked a sharp turnaround for a stock that had been trading near its lowest levels of the year just days earlier. Charter Hall ended Monday's session at 17.85 Australian dollars, and its securities slid to annual lows this month as rising bond yields hit rate-sensitive property names.

Property sector posts big rebound

Charter Hall's gains came as part of a broad rally in real estate investment trusts, which have been among the worst-hit sectors on the Australian market this year. Market Index described Wednesday as a massive day for battered REITs, with the S&P/ASX 200 Real Estate sector climbing 3.1% to a three-week high.

Other rate-sensitive stocks also advanced strongly. Charter Hall, Stockland, JB Hi-Fi and Wesfarmers were each up an outsized 4% to 5% during the session.

The sector had been bouncing strongly off a near three-year low as Australia's three-year government bond yield, which is closely tied to interest rate expectations, fell to 4.88%, down 17 basis points since the RBA's decision on Tuesday.

RBA comments shift market sentiment

The move followed the Reserve Bank's decision on Tuesday to raise its official cash rate to 4.6%, a 15-year high, marking its fourth increase of the year. While the hike was widely expected, comments from Governor Michele Bullock after........

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