Dec 24 (Reuters) - Australian shares were largely flat on Tuesday as gains in tech and energy stocks offset losses in banks and gold, while investors digested minutes of the central bank's December policy meeting.

The S&P/ASX 200 .AXJO index edged 0.1% lower to 8,196.4 0025 GMT. The benchmark closed 1.7% higher on Monday.

Minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia's $(RBA)$ December board meeting released on Tuesday showed the central bank judged the upside risks to inflation to have diminished and the downside risks to the economy to have strengthened.

The RBA had turned dovish in its policy earlier this month, holding rates but keeping the door open to a cut in 2025. Investors have priced in a 55% chance of policy easing in February while a cut is fully priced in by April, and lower rates could hurt the earnings of the financial sector.

The financials index .AXFJ fell 0.2%, with shares of Commonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX, ANZ ANZ.AX and Westpac WBC.AX down between 0.1% and 0.5%.

Miners .AXMM lost 0.6% on the back of declining metal prices, with BHP Group BHP.AX dropping 0.4%. MET/L

Gold stocks .AXGD fell 1.3% after bullion prices eased weighed down by a robust dollar. Shares of Northern Star Resources NST.AX and Evolution Mining EVN.AX declined about 1.1% and 0.3% each. GOL/

Energy firms .AXEJ, bucking the trend, gained 0.3% in thin trading ahead of the Christmas holiday on Wednesday.

Sector heavyweights Viva Energy VEA.AX and Beach Energy BPT.AX gained around 0.7% each.

Tech stocks .AXIJ tracking their U.S. peers which closed higher on Monday gained 0.4%.

In company news, ASX-listed shares of Arcadium Lithium LTM.AX rose as much as 7.4% after its shareholders approved $6.7 billion Rio Tinto RIO.AX takeover. Rio shares edged up 0.1%.

St Barbara's SBM.AX shares plummet up to 36.1%, potentially marking the worst trading day since 1990, following a significant tax bill from the Papua New Guinea government linked to its Simberi operations.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 gained 0.7% at 13,074.74 points.

(Reporting by Kumar Tanishk in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)

((Tanishk.Kumar@thomsonreuters.com;))