Jan 25 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to open lower on Thursday, taking their cues from Wall Street, where stocks faltered after comments by U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross hinted at action against China in a trade war.
Nasdaq Composite lost ground after the comments by Ross .
Material stocks are expected to weigh on the main index, following iron ore futures in China, which fell overnight .
The local share price index futures fell 0.3 percent or 19 points, a 72.7-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark rose 0.3 percent on Wednesday.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was flat in early trade.
(Reporting by Sandhya Sampath in Bengaluru, editing by Larry King)
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