SYDNEY, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Australian shares are set to fall 
on Tuesday, with financial firms such as Macquarie Bank Ltd 
<MBL.AX> leading declines on fresh concerns about credit markets, 
though energy firms may gain after oil jumped to a record. 
    Dashing hopes for a fast resolution to the credit squeeze, 
Citigroup Inc <C.N> said the U.S. consumer credit will likely 
weaken this quarter after mortgage delinquencies accelerated, 
while big U.S. banks said they were forming a fund to shore up 
the commercial paper market. 
    (For details, see:[ID:nN15323179] and [ID:nN15335944]). 
    Those credit concerns weighed on U.S. stocks, with the Dow 
Jones industrials <.DJI> and S&P 500 <.SPX> posting their worst 
day in five weeks on Monday [.N]. 
    Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> fell 0.15 
percent, or 9.9 points, to 6,739.0 on Monday, its second straight 
session of declines. 
    The index had risen as much as 0.8 percent to an all-time 
high of 6,800.2 during the session, its 12th intraday record in 
the last three weeks. 
    December share price index futures <YAPcm1> fell 43 points to 
6,753.0 in after-hours trade, still a 14-point premium to the 
underlying index. 
    New Zealand's benchmark NZX-50 index <.NZ50> fell 0.2 
percent, or 9.2 points, to 4,315.89 early on Tuesday. The top 
stock, Telecom Corp of New Zealand Ltd <TEL.NZ>, was unchanged at 
NZ$4.49. 
    In Australia, renewed worries about global credit markets are 
likely to pressure financial firms such as Macquarie Bank, 
Australia's top investment bank, and other major banks. 
    But energy firms such as Woodside Petroleum Ltd <WPL.AX> may 
rise after U.S crude oil jumped nearly 3 percent to a record over 
$86 a barrel on Monday as fresh tensions in the Middle East added 
to worries of a supply crunch [ID:nSP229995]. 
    Biotechnology company Actinogen Ltd <ACW.AX> will make its 
trading debut. 
 ($1=A$1.11) 
 ($1=NZ$1.31) 
 ((Reporting by Geraldine Chua; [email protected]; 
Reuters Messaging:[email protected]; +612 
9373 1818)) 
 ((Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: 
 * 3000 Xtra    : visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com 
 * BridgeStation: view story .134 
For more information on Top News, please visit 
http://topnews.reuters.com)) 
    DIARIES & DATA: 
 IPO diary & data  <AU/IPOMENU>  Asia earnings diary [ASIA/EQTY] 
 U.S. earnings diary  [RESF/US]  European diary       [WEU/EQTY] 
 Australia diary      [AU/DIARY] Wall Street Week Ahead   [.N/O] 
 Eurostocks Week Ahead  [.EU/O] 
................................................................ 
For latest top breaking news across all markets          [NEWS] 
................................................................ 
TOP NEWS SUMMARIES ON OTHER SUBJECTS 
| U.S. Companies     [TOP/EQU] | European Companies  [TOP/EQE] | 
| Forex              [TOP/FRX] | Global Economy    [TOP/MACRO] | 
| Tech.Media,Telecoms[TOP/TMT] | Banking, Financials [TOP/FIN] | 
| Politics & General   [TOP/G] | Sports              [TOP/SPO] | 
................................................................ 
MAJOR STOCK MARKET REPORTS 
New York           [.N]          Weekly outlook New York [.N/O] 
Pan-Europe        [.EU]          Weekly outlook Europe  [.EU/O] 
London             [.L]          Weekly outlook London   [.L/O] 
Tokyo              [.T] 
................................................................ 
ASIA STOCK MARKETS 
Pan-Asia......................[STXNEWS/AS] 
Bangkok......[.BK]    Karachi........[.KA]    S/east Asia.[.SO] 
Bombay.......[.BO]    Kuala Lumpur...[.KL]    Sydney/NZ...[.AX] 
China........[.SS]    Seoul..........[.KS]    Taipei......[.TW] 
Hong Kong....[.HK]    Singapore......[.SI]    Tokyo........[.T] 
................................................................ 
Access to some items may depend on subscription level. 
................................................................ 
UP-TO-THE-MINUTE HEADLINES 
Company results             [RES]  Economic indicators     [ECI] 
Mergers & acquisitions      [MRG]  Interest rates          [INT] 
LIVE PRICES & DATA 
World Stocks           <0#.INDEX>  Currency rates   <EFX=><NFX=> 
Dow Jones/NASDAQ    <.DJI><.IXIC>  Nikkei                <.N225> 
FTSE 100                  <.FTSE>  Debt      <0#USBMK=><EURIBOR> 
HOW TO FIND INFORMATION YOU NEED 
|<REUTERS> | <NEWS> | <PHONE/HELP> | 
|<EQUITY>  | <BONDS>|   <MONEY>    |   <COMMODITY> |  <ENERGY> | 
    LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks          <0#.INDEX> 
 Currency rates  <EFX=> <NFX=> 
 Dow Jones/NASDAQ  <.DJI> <.IXIC>  Nikkei                <.N225> 
 FTSE 100                 <.FTSE>  Debt     <0#USBMK=> <EURIBOR> 
 (Local currency)          <AUD=>  LME price overview    <RING=> 
Keywords: MARKETS AUSTRALIA STOCKS