All three of the major US indexes turned positive late in Thursday's session.

The initial losses came after a measure of US consumer confidence posted its sharpest decline in more than three years in December.

The local share price index futures was flat at a 44.2-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark climbed 1.9 percent on Thursday.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index edged lower in early trade.