Australian shares are poised to open higher on Wednesday after Wall Street's major benchmarks climbed to fresh record highs amid optimism that a deal to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz could be reached soon.
S&P/ASX 200 futures were up 41 points, or 0.5%, to 9,131, pointing to a stronger start for the local market.
Overnight in the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both closed at record highs. The Dow rose 1.7%, the S&P 500 gained 1.8%, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.6%.
Investor sentiment was also supported by strong corporate earnings, with Palantir and Caterpillar among the standout performers.
Among the Magnificent Seven technology stocks, Nvidia and Apple led gains, while Amazon and Meta Platforms finished lower.
The positive lead follows a strong session on the Australian sharemarket, where the benchmark index closed at its highest level since 3 March as banking and technology stocks drove broad-based gains ahead of the local earnings season.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 126.5 points, or 1.4%, to 9,145.8, with 10 of the 11 sectors ending the day higher.
Investors will also be watching earnings on Wednesday, with Light & Wonder scheduled to report.
On the bond markets, the Australian 10-year government bond yield was steady at 4.928%, while the two-year yield eased 0.2% to 4.521%.
