Australia

Australian shares are set to open lower, after US stocks ended lower, after a higher start, as investors sifted through the latest earnings reports and economic data.

ASX futures were down 0.17% or 14 points as of 8:00am on Thursday, suggesting a lower open.

The Nasdaq Composite pulled back from Tuesday's record high following mixed results in the latest corporate earnings reports.

The U.S. economy continued growing last quarter, but at a slower pace than the previous period, according to preliminary gross domestic product figures. Meanwhile, payroll data from ADP showed private-sector jobs in October grew more than economists expected.

The Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.6%, a day after clinching a new record. The S&P 500 shed 0.3%, while the Dow industrials edged down 0.2%.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was higher 2.7% to US$73.07 a barrel, while gold was unchanged at US$2,786.58.

The Australian dollar was at 65.72 US cents, up from its previous close of 65.59.

Asia

Chinese shares closed mixed. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6% to 3,266.24, and the Shenzhen Composite Index was unchanged at 1,973.62.

Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 1.5% to 20,380.64.

Japanese shares closed higher. The Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.0% to 39,277.39.

India shares ended lower. The BSE SENSEX dropped 0.5% to 79,942.18.

Europe

Stocks in the U.K. finished lower. The FTSE 100 Index slipped 0.7% to 8,159.63.

In Europe, shares closed lower. Germany's DAX slipped 1.1% to 19,257.34, and France's CAC 40 lost 1.1% to 7,428.36.

North America

U.S. stocks ended lower. The DJIA fell 0.2% to 42,141.54, the S&P 500 dropped 0.3% to 5,813.67, and the Nasdaq slipped 0.6% to 18,607.93.

Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Garmin Ltd, surging 23.31%, Smurfit WestRock PLC jumped 11.99%, and FMC Corp lifted 10.67%.

The biggest decliners were Super Micro Computer Inc which dropped 32.72%, Qorvo Inc fell 27.35%, and CDW Corp lost 11.27%.