It was a fairly lacklustre performance on Wall Street overnight, with investors showing little reaction to some important economic developments.

The release of the Fed minutes for December revealed that a majority of members saw the benefits of continued bond purchases declining over time.

The minutes contained few surprises, with traders still anticipating a gradual increase in the pace of stimulus tapering in 2014.

Data also revealed private employers added a bigger-than-expected 238,000 jobs last month, fuelling hopes for a bumper non-farm payrolls result this Friday night.

There was mostly red in commodity markets, with oil sliding another percent after data showed a smaller-than-expected decrease in weekly US crude stockpiles.

Gold suffered its third loss in a row as the positive jobs data strengthened the case for stimulus tapering and buoyed the US dollar.

The greenback recorded widespread gains versus other currencies, including the euro, which was weaker even though eurozone data showed regional retail sales soaring the most in 12 years in November.

In economic news, building approvals and retail sales are both due for release at 11:30am, AEDT.

Morning Market Update: Soft Start Ahead is a post from: Australian Stock Report Market Pulse Blog