Oct 3 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set to open higher on Wednesday, helped by mining stocks that are expected to inch up on the back of firmer metal prices. Gold hit its highest in more than a week on Tuesday, while LME copper ended up 0.5 percent. The local share price index futures rose 0.14 percent or 9 points to 6,126, a 0.2-point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark fell 0.8 percent on Tuesday. In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index slipped 0.1 percent at 2110 GMT. (Reporting by Shanima A in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Cooney)