Uncertainties surround the timing and location of the US and China signing a long-awaited "phase one" trade deal this year.
"Sentiment has cooled in global markets, but it undoubtedly remains positive," IG market analyst Kyle Rodda said this morning.
He said the ASX was "something of a laggard" relative to global stock markets and 6,770-6,775 was the technical line-in-the-sand to watch, with a break above that point signalling the will to drive the ASX200 to its own record highs.
Market futures were pointing to a positive start in Australia, Toronto and on the S&P500 but not on London's major index.
The gold price was just above US$1,490 an ounce on the spot market earlier.
Among the majors, Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) closed up 0.1% in London and BHP (ASX: BHP) was off about 1% in morning trade as its AGM got underway in Sydney.
Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX) rose 2.4% after releasing its third quarter results yesterday, while Newmont Goldcorp (NYSE: NEM) was up 0.3% after its results earlier this week had disappointed.