Oct 18 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to take a breather and snap five straight sessions of gains on Wednesday as base metal prices retreated after a strong rally.
The local share price index futures YAPcm1 fell 0.1 percent, or 6 points to 5,865, a 24.6-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark ended up 0.7 percent on Tuesday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell 0.2 percent in early trade.
For a summary of overnight action across global markets, double click on AU/CALL
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