The benchmark S&P/ASX200 rose 5.1 points by midday, up 0.06 per cent to 8,808.6, as the broader All Ordinaries slipped 1.8 points, or 0.02 per cent, to 9,078.9.
The steady start came after Wall Street's three major indexes notched record closes, after a sharp downward revision of US jobs figures further narrowed bets on an incoming US Federal Reserve rate cut.
The world's largest economy had created 911,000 fewer jobs in March than previously reported, ANZ senior economist Bansi Madhavani said.
"To put the size into context, the revisions imply that monthly job growth was roughly half of what was indicated previously," she told the ANZ 5 in 5 podcast.
"The data will support the statement that the labour market is slowing and the Fed will resume cutting rates in September."
Six of 11 local sectors were in the green at midday on Wednesday, with financials (+1.2 per cent), utilities (+0.6 per cent) and tech (+0.5 per cent) stocks lifting the bourse.
Commonwealth Bank rose 1.6 per cent to $168.73 per share, as ANZ (+1.5 per cent), Westpac (+1.4 per cent), and Macquarie Group (+0.8 per cent) also posted gains.
NAB jumped by 1.3 per cent announcing it would axe 410 jobs, a day after ANZ said it would cut 3500 positions.
Qantas shares lifted by 0.3 per cent to $11.85, while its Kiwi counterpart Air New Zealand ticked up by 0.9 per cent.
In the utilities sector, Origin Energy and APA group each gained 0.7 per cent.
Elsewhere, oil and gas producer Woodside was steady while Santos ticked up by 0.3 per cent, after Israel launched an attack on senior Hamas leaders in Qatar, sparking a spike in oil prices.
The materials segment is a sea of red as BHP tumbled 1.5 per cent, Pilbara Minerals shed 14.8 per cent, Rio Rinto sank 1.6 per cent and Lynas Rare Earths shed 2.8 per cent.
Iluka Resources lost 10.5 per cent as it announced it would halt production on a Western Australian mine due to lower demand for mineral sands.
The broader sector was down 1.9 per cent by lunch time.
Health Insurer Medibank Private and global logistics company Brambles have also dropped by 1.8 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively after going ex-dividend.
Other companies going ex-dividend on Wednesday, including Orica Limited (-0.4 per cent), Aristocrat Leisure (-0.4 per cent), and South 32 (-1.7), also dropped while QBE Insurance bucked the trend, rising by 1.3 per cent to $21.06, tracking with broader insurance sector gains.
Gold is hovering near record highs reached on Tuesday, trading at $USD 3,634 ($A5,510) per ounce.
The Australian dollar has dipped back below 66 US cents to 65.93 US cents at midday, down from 66.05 US cents at 5pm on Tuesday.
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