The Australian share market has opened marginally higher on the back of a positive lead from Wall Street where two of the three stock indexes hit record closing highs on its first trading day for 2018.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 0.08 per cent, at 6,065.9, after the first half-hour of trade on Wednesday, with mining stocks leading the gains.
CMC chief market analyst Ric Spooner said local shares received a slight boost from the US, where technology stocks drove the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to record highs, but remain in a "wait and see" mode.
"US investors put their money where their mouth is, starting the year with a confidence-boosting rally in cyclical stocks," Mr Spooner said.
"Our market has responded to that, but not in an overly robust fashion. Rather, the index is continuing to languish."
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.42 per cent, the S&P 500 gained 0.83 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.5 per cent.
Mr Spooner said Australian shares could go either way on Wednesday, but may gather confidence throughout the week if US shares continue with positive momentum.
"I think if we were to see the US markets move strongly into new high ground over the next few days, then it would certainly inspire a bit more confidence here," he said.
"I suspect we might wait for a day or two."
A boost in the price of iron ore sent mining stocks higher, with BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals up between 1.9 per cent and 2.2 per cent.
The big four banks were also stronger, with Commonwealth and National Australia Bank the best performers among the pack, both trading 0.3 per cent higher to $80.42 and $26.645, respectively.
But energy stocks were mixed after oil prices hit mid-2015 highs early on in their first trading session for 2018, before dipping to settle slightly lower.
Woodside Petroleum was flat at $33.18, Santos sank 0.4 per cent to $5.44, while Oil Search rose 0.1 per cent to $7.81.
In company news, Yowie Group shares slumped to a near-five-year low, down 35.7 per cent to 13.5 cents, after it slashed its full-year sales growth guidance, and chief executive Bert Alfonso stepped down from the helm of the chocolate maker.
DuluxGroup's shares were also down, by more than one per cent to $7.58, after the company announced its majority-owned business DGL Camel International had inked a deal to sell most of its Hong Kong and China coatings portfolio to Yip's Chemical Holdings.
Meanwhile, the Australian dollar has slipped a little lower against its US counterpart despite the greenback dropping to a three-month low.
The local currency was trading at 78.33 US cents at 1030 AEDT on Wednesday, from 78.39 on Tuesday.
ON THE ASX AT 1035 AEDT:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 was up 4.6 points, or 0.08 per cent, at 6,065.9 points
* The broader All Ordinaries index was up 4.8 points, or 0.08 per cent, at 6,170.8 points
* The SPI200 futures contract was down 3.0 points, or 0.05 per cent, at 6,019 points
* National turnover was 1.2 billion securities traded worth $473.2 million
