May 31 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to open...

May 31 (Reuters) - Australian shares are expected to open higher on Friday, tracking gains on Wall Street, and are likely to be supported by a surge in Crown Resorts Ltd (CWN) shares after U.S. firm Melco Resorts & Entertainment MLCO.O said it will buy a stake in the casino operator.

Melco Resorts & Entertainment on Thursday said it will acquire a 20% stake in Crown Resorts from casino mogul James Packer for A$1.76 billion ($1.22 billion).

The local share price index futures YAPcm1 rose 0.3% or 19 points to 6,412, a 19.9-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index (xjo) close. The benchmark fell 0.7% on Thursday.

In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index (nz50) fell 0.1% at 2204 GMT.