Australia shares end almost flat as Evergrande worries weigh on miners

A pedestrian, reflected in a window of the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), looks at a screen showing financial data in Sydney - Reuters

AUSTRALIAN shares closed little changed on Thursday as the lifting of restrictions in Melbourne later in the night helped investor sentiment and offset worries about China Evergrande Group's potential debt default.

The benchmark index inched 0.02% higher to close at 7,415.4 points.