July 30 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set to open higher on Thursday in line with a strong finish on Wall Street after the U.S. Federal Reserve reiterated its pledge to maintain near-zero interest rates as long as necessary.
Fed policymakers stated once again that they would use the "full range of tools" available to them to support the coronavirus-hit economy. local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.9%, a 22.6-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark fell 0.2% on Wednesday
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 rose 0.5% by 2212 GMT.