Australian shares are poised to open higher on Wednesday, taking cues from a strong overnight session on Wall Street, as gains made in heavyweight technology firms propelled the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq higher.

The local share price index futures rose 0.5%, a 48.2-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark closed marginally lower on Tuesday.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.1% in early trading.