Australian shares ended flat with a positive bias on Thursday, as softer-than-expected inflation data raised bets for an interest rate cut next month.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index was little changed to close at 8,550.8.

The country's Consumer Price Index for the month of May rose just 2.1%, supporting forecasts that the Reserve Bank would cut rates in July, Bloomberg reported.

However, with Trump's tariffs, growth concerns may soon outweigh inflation fears, the report said.

"The decision to cut the cash rate in July will still be a close one," CBA's Belinda Allen wrote in a note.

On the domestic front, seasonally adjusted job vacancies in Australia rose 2.9% to 339,400 in the three months to May, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said.

Australia's economy is set to grow by 1.7% in the current year with stable inflation and rising unemployment, as the global landscape shifts under a more protectionist "Trump 2.0" regime that threatens to disrupt trade, investment, and supply chains worldwide, National Australia Bank's (ASX:NAB) Group Chief Economist Sally Auld said in a report.

In company news, Regal Partners (ASX:RPL) acquired a 50% stake in Ark Capital Partners, a specialist hotel investment and advisory firm.

Xero (ASX:XRO) received commitments to raise AU$1.85 billion through the placement of 10.5 million shares at AU$176 apiece. Shares of the company fell 5% at market close.

Lastly, PointsBet Holdings (ASX:PBH) said Mixi Australia intends to proceed with a conditional off-market takeover offer to acquire all of the company's shares for A$1.20 per share in cash.