July 17 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set to open higher on Friday, cheered on by government stimulus and record employment numbers in June, with investors looking past a rise in the jobless rate.
Though the jobless rate in June hit a 22-year high, employment rose by a record as Australia emerged from coronavirus-induced lockdowns. to sentiment, the Australian government is injecting a further A$1.5 billion ($1.05 billion) into a wage subsidy programme to counter rising unemployment. local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.2%, a 20.9-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark fell 0.7% on Thursday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 fell 0.09% in early trade.
($1 = 1.4349 Australian dollars)