Dec 7 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set to open higher on Monday, likely helped by the country's heavyweight mining stocks on the back of strong iron ore prices.
Dalian iron ore hit a record high on Friday, boosted by robust demand in China and supply concerns fuelled by disappointing forecasts by Brazilian miner Vale SA VALE3.SA . IRONORE/
The local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.6%, a 47.9-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark ended 0.3% higher on Friday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index .NZ50 rose 0.8% in early trade.