SYDNEY, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Australian shares were set for an uncertain start on Thursday after Wall Street ended mixed and Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen acknowledged the turmoil in global markets while also sticking to the script on gradual rate rises.
European stocks markets did manage a modest bounce overnight, but gains for sovereign bonds and the yen suggested investors remained reluctant to take on risk.
The local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.4 percent to 4,728, though that was still a discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close of 4,775.
The benchmark has taken a beating this week, sliding 4 percent in just two sessions for the worst such drop since August last year. Wednesday's close was the lowest since mid-2013 when the index troughed around 4,632.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 edged up 0.13 percent to 6,027 in early trade.
For a summary of overnight action across global markets, double click on AU/CALL
For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on PRESS/AUB