Australia

Australian shares are set to open lower, after US benchmarks declined on a higher-than-expected producer-price index rise.

ASX futures were down 0.65% or 55 points as of 8:30am on Friday, suggesting a lower open.

US stocks slipped after the November producer-price index rose 0.4% from October, a little above analysts' expectations.

The declines in major indexes were modest, however, as the data did little to shake investors' confidence that the Fed will trim rates again.

Initial jobless claims, meanwhile, rose more than expected.

Warner Bros. Discovery shares jumped 15% on its restructuring plan, while Photoshop maker Adobe dropped 14% after issuing a weak outlook.

ServiceTitan stock surged 42% following its initial public offering on the Nasdaq.

DJIA fell 234 points, or 0.5%, to 43,914, the S&P 500 lost 0.5% to 6,051 and the Nasdaq dropped back under 20,000, slipping 0.7% to 19,902.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was down 0.1% to US$73.45 a barrel, while gold was down 1.3% to US$2,682.19.

The Australian dollar was at 63.60 US cents, down from its previous close of 63.66.

Asia

Chinese shares closed higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.8% to 3,461.50, and the Shenzhen Composite Index added 1.1% to 2,112.90.

Hong Kong shares ended higher. The benchmark Hang Seng Index gained 1.2% to 20,397.05.

Japanese shares closed higher. The Nikkei Stock Average increased 1.2% to 39,849.14.

India shares ended lower. The BSE SENSEX lost 0.3% to 81,289.96.

Europe

Stocks in the U.K. finished higher. The FTSE 100 Index rose 0.1% to 8,311.76.

In Europe, shares closed mixed. Germany's DAX added 0.1% to 20,426.27, and France's CAC 40 was unchanged at 7,420.94.

North America

US stocks ended lower. The DJIA fell 0.5% to 43,914.12, the S&P 500 dropped 0.5% to 6,051.25, and the Nasdaq slipped 0.7% to 19,902.84.

Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Warner Bros. Discovery Inc WBD, surging 15.43%, C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc CHRW jumped 4.52%, and West Pharmaceutical Services Inc WST lifted 4.21%.

The biggest decliners were Adobe Inc ADBE which dropped 13.69%, Nordson Corp NDSN fell 8.19%, and Western Digital Corp WDC lost 5.59%.