Australian shares are likely to rise for the fourth straight day on Friday, as investors remain upbeat on the U.S. Federal Reserve's lesser hawkish stance on rising interest rates, while miners are likely to add to gains on higher iron ore prices.

The local share price index futures (YAPcm1) rose 0.2% a 23.2 point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.1% by 2205 GMT.