[Morningstar with AAP]: Investors have helped the share market to its first gain in five sessions after shrugging off a poor US lead, as their peers worried about coronavirus infections and next week's presidential election.

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark index finished up 6.7 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 6057.7 on Wednesday.

The All Ordinaries closed higher by 15.3 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 6262.5.

Shares were lower for the first hour of trade, but then improved.

Information technology finished the best sector, up 3.01 per cent following Afterpay's first quarter results.

Consumer staples was next, up 1.83 per cent after Coles showed improved first quarter sales.

Materials, which includes the miners, gained 0.22 per cent. The other heavyweight sector, financials, ended down 0.9 per cent.

Macquarie Private Bank division director Lucinda Chan noted buyers had returned after Tuesday's 1.7 per cent dip in the ASX200, but was unsure why.

Analysts warned of plenty of risk this week as US tech giants report earnings, coronavirus infection rates surge in the US and Europe, and the presidential election looms.

Ms Chan said fund managers often improved their books at the end of a month to ensure performance met expectation.

"That's all I can put down to why we've got buying support," she said.

IG Markets analyst Kyle Rodda said while virus infections were climbing the list of US traders' concerns, it was not showing in the Australian market.

Australia recorded a 1.6 per cent spike in inflation for the September quarter, attributed to the end of the federal government's free child care package introduced for the coronavirus lockdown.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics said the cost of child care added 0.9 percentage points to CPI, and was the largest contributor.

It left annual inflation at a meagre 0.7 per cent.

Meanwhile, Melbourne restaurants, cafes, pubs and retail stores opened their doors to customers after coronavirus restrictions were eased.

Some businesses opened in the early hours as Melburnians lapped up freedoms they had not enjoyed for months.

On the ASX, Afterpay shares gained 7.28 per cent to $102.97 after its first quarter update showed underlying sales improved by 115 per cent to $4.1 billion.

The vendor has nearly doubled its customers to 11.2 million since the first quarter of last year.

Online furniture trader Temple & Webster was one of the best movers of large companies, up 8.01 per cent to $10.65.

Vitamins supplier Blackmores was the best of the largest players though. It rose 13.66 per cent to $72.48.

Elsewhere, Coles ended higher by 2.73 per cent to $17.68 after reporting a 10 per cent increase on first quarter sales compared to the same period last year.

Its supermarkets' comparable sales growth for the first four weeks of the second quarter was 6.4 per cent.

Miners were mixed. BHP lost 0.49 per cent to $34.77, Rio Tinto slipped 0.39 per cent to $91.94, while Fortescue was up 1.67 per cent to $16.48.

In banking, ANZ lost 1.74 per cent to $19.16, the Commonwealth fell 0.44 per cent to $68.45, NAB shed 1.1 per cent to $18.88 and Westpac was down 1.35 per cent to $18.31.

In the US earlier, stocks on Wall Street closed slightly lower. The Dow and S&P 500 dipped on disappointing earnings, infection rates and little hope for economic stimulus before the US presidential election.

On Thursday, ANZ Bank will report full-year results. JB Hi-Fi will have its annual general meeting.

The Aussie dollar was buying 71.53 US cents at 1707 AEDT, up from 71.35 US cents at the close of trade on Tuesday.

ON THE ASX

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark index finished up 6.7 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 6057.7 on Wednesday.

The All Ordinaries closed higher by 15.3 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 6262.5.

At 1707 AEDT, the SPI200 futures index was trading even to 6045.

The NZX 50 added 12.61 points (0.10%) to 12,264.52 while the Nikkei dropped -67.29 points (-0.29%) at the time of writing, to be closed at 23,418.51

Companies Holding Annual General Meeting (ASX 300):

Medical Developments International Limited

St Barbara Limited

Vocus Group Limited