May 30 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to fall on Thursday following overnight losses in world stock markets as risk appetite was battered by worries about global economic growth due to escalating U.S.-China trade tensions.
Shares globally were pulled down on Wednesday, after Chinese newspapers warned that Beijing could use rare earths to strike back at Washington after U.S. President Donald Trump remarked he was "not yet ready" to make a deal with China over trade. MKTS/GLOB
The local share price index futures YAPcm1 fell 0.5% or 31 points to 6,399, a 41-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark slipped 0.7% on Wednesday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 was down 0.2% at 2205 GMT.