Nov 14 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to open slightly lower on Monday, tracking global stocks, while a powerful earthquake and series of aftershocks rocked New Zealand, killing two and sending thousands fleeing to higher ground.
Emergency response teams were dispatched by helicopter to the region at the epicentre of the quake, while power was out, roads blocked by landslips and phone lines down in many areas of the country. Zealand's Geonet measured Monday's quake at magnitude 7.5, while the U.S. Geological Survey put it at 7.8.
The local share price index futures YAPcm1 were down 0.3 percent or 15 points at 5,342, a 28.7-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark ended 0.8 percent higher in the last session.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 was up 0.4 percent, or 26.46 points, at 6,724.24.
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