Oct 26 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to slip at open on Thursday, with weak commodity prices likely to pull material and energy stocks lower, while a slump on Wall Street in the previous session is also seen weighing on sentiment.
U.S. oil prices slipped on Wednesday after a surprising increase in U.S. crude inventories, while soft earnings on Wall Street caused a slump in U.S. stocks. MET/L O/R .N
Locally, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd ANZ.AX posted annual statutory net profit of A$6.41 billion ($4.94 billion), slightly below an average estimate of A$6.87 billion from 9 analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. local share price index futures YAPcm1 fell 0.2 percent or 11 points to 5,878, a 27.6-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark rose 0.1 percent on Wednesday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell 0.1 percent in early trade, ahead of the release of September trade balance data.
($1 = 1.2977 Australian dollars)