The S&P-ASX 200 index closed ahead of the Easter holiday at 4907.7 points, up 0.7%, while the All Ordinaries also added 0.7% to 4925.9 points.

The big news today was Lihir Gold’s snub of a $A9.2 billion offer from rival Newcrest Mining on the grounds that it undervalued Lihir both in terms of its existing business and in terms of the potential value.

However, Newcrest chief executive officer Ian Smith said the cash and scrip transaction for Lihir was "full and fair".

"We found [Lihir’s] stance this morning a little surprising," Dow Jones Newswires quoted Smith as saying during a conference call to analysts.

"Over the next week and a half, we will be engaging with our major shareholders, explaining the situation, explaining our position, and out of that I am sure we will determine the next steps."

Lihir’s share price skyrocketed a whopping $1.02, or 33%, to $4.05 in today’s trade before cooling slightly to $4.04, up $1.01, at market close on heavy volume of more than 278 million shares, accounting for more than a third of the rise in the index.

On the other hand, Newcrest finished the day 96c higher at $33.78.

At the big end of town, BHP Billiton added 36c to close the week at $43.95, while Rio Tinto finished $1.20 higher at $79.60.

In other takeover news, MacArthur Coal closed up 82c, or 5.8%, to $14.87 after yesterday rejecting a takeover bid from Peabody.

Australia’s third-biggest iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group finished the day 7c higher at $4.97, while OZ Minerals gained 4.5c to $1.19.

On the commodities front, nickel led the gains with three-month delivery up 2.7% to $US24,995 per tonne, while copper fell 0.8% to $7790/t and zinc shed 0.2% to $2375/t.

In other mining news, Beadell Resources said it had received commitments from institutional and sophisticated investors to subscribe for shares in the company to raise $A57 million.

The funds will go towards the $US53 million acquisition of the Amapari gold project in Brazil.