July 10 (Reuters) - Australian shares are likely to drop on Friday, tracking a fall in U.S. peers, as a surge in coronavirus cases stoked fears of new rounds of lockdowns and deepening global economic fallout from the pandemic.
Investor sentiment took a hit as a record-breaking number of coronavirus cases and deaths in several U.S. states dimmed hopes of economic recovery, while worldwide coronavirus cases crossed 12.16 million. Australia, Queensland is set to tighten its border by banning non-residents from Victoria entering the state from Friday noon. New South Wales and South Australia closed their borders with Victoria earlier in the week. local share price index futures YAPcm1 fell 0.4%, a 59.5-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark ended 0.6% higher in the previous session.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 marginally rose 0.3% to 11,478.73 points in early trade.