Australian shares rose on Monday's close as investors cheered better-than-expected US inflation data that sparked hope for further interest rate cuts next year.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 1.7% or 134.6 points to close at 8,201.6

The core personal consumption inflation, the US Fed's preferred inflation gauge rose 0.1% to 2.4% in November, its smallest gain since May, Bloomberg reported.

"Lower than expected US core PCE inflation data for November suggests that the Fed may have gotten too negative on inflation," AMP's Head of Investment Strategy and Chief Economist Shane Oliver said in a note.

"Our overall assessment remains that the trend in shares is still up, including for Australian shares, but expect a far more volatile and constrained ride over the year ahead," Oliver added.

News Corp (ASX:NWS) entered an agreement to sell its sports and entertainment content streaming unit, Foxtel Group, to British sports media company DAZN for AU$3.4 billion.

Westpac Banking's (ASX:WBC) unit Westpac New Zealand admitted to misleading customers in relation to advertised discounts, resulting in nearly NZ$6.4 million in overcharges. Its shares rose 2% on close.

Lastly, EML Payments (ASX:EML) named the current independent Non-Executive Chair Anthony Hynes as Executive Chair. Share of the company slumped 22% at market close.