Australia shares set to rise at open, NZ up

Australian shares were expected to open higher on Thursday as easing inflation fears helped Wall Street and other global stocks gain and the U.S Congress approved a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package.

The local share price index futures rose 0.5%, a 34-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark closed 0.8% lower on Wednesday.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.3% by 2120 GMT.