Australian shares are poised to open largely flat on Friday as investors are likely to shy away from big bets ahead of a holiday-extended weekend, despite a generally positive broader environment.

The local share price index futures was up 0.04%, a 6.5-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark closed 0.4% higher on Thursday.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.4% to 12,573.79 in early trade.