Feb 2 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set to open higher on Thursday, in line with stocks around the globe, after the U.S. Federal Reserve painted an upbeat picture of the U.S. economy.
The Fed left interest rates unchanged as expected in its first meeting this year and since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.2 percent or 9 points, to 5,608, a 45.2 point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark ended 0.57 percent higher in the previous session.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell marginally at 0.07 percent or 4.51 points to 7,050.630 at 2118 GMT.
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