Australian shares seen steady despite gains on Wall Street

The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open barely changed despite overnight gains on Wall Street, where stocks rose on increasing expectations of a second Donald Trump presidency and the growing probability that the US Federal Reserve will begin cutting rates soon.

The numbers: The Dow Jones index ended 0.53% higher to a fresh record close while the broader S&P 500 gained 0.28% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.40%. In the local market, ASX 200 futures were down just 4 points or 0.05% to 7,998 points at 7.00am AEST on Tuesday.

The context: US stocks closed higher after Trump, the official Republican nominee for president, appeared to improve his chances for election after an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania on Saturday. That could presumably result in a more hawkish trade policy, an extension of tax cuts and deregulation in a host of areas ranging from climate change to cryptocurrencies.

Sentiment was also buoyed by optimism that the US Federal Reserve will enter its expected interest rate cutting phase as early as September, with as many as three total cuts by the end of the year. Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated his belief that the US economy can avoid recession, and recent data readings showed progress in bringing inflation down to the central bank's 2% goal.