Australia shares set to advance; New Zealand near flat

Australian shares on Friday are expected
to open higher following their Wall Street peers after comments
from a Federal Reserve policymaker raised hopes of an interest
rate cut from the U.S. central bank later this month.
Fed policymakers cannot afford to keep their “powder dry”
and wait for potential economic problems to materialize, New
York Fed President John Williams said at a central banking
conference.
The local share price index futures