Australia

Australian shares are set to open lower, after US stocks rose as business activity stayed strong in September.

ASX futures were down 0.11% or 9 points as of 8:00am on Tuesday, suggesting a lower open.

U.S. stocks rose modestly as investors got a fresh look at the health of the global economy.

The S&P 500 rose 0.3%, the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.2%. "Servicers reported stellar demand, " said José Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was down 0.8% to US$73.90 a barrel, while gold was flat at US$2,628.03.

The Australian dollar was at 68.33 US cents, up from its previous close of 68.06.

Asia

Chinese shares closed higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.4% to 2,748.92, and the Shenzhen Composite Index added 0.1% to 1,496.82.

Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index slipped 0.1% to 18,247.11.

Japanese shares closed higher. The Nikkei Stock Average lifted 1.5% to 37,723.91.

India shares ended higher. The BSE SENSEX gained 0.5% to 84,928.61.

Europe

Stocks in the U.K. finished higher. The FTSE 100 Index rose 0.4% to 8,259.71.

In Europe, shares closed higher. Germany's DAX gained 0.7% to 18,846.79, and France's CAC 40 added 0.1% to 7,508.08.

North America

U.S. stocks ended higher. The DJIA rose 0.1% to 42,124.65, the S&P 500 added 0.3% to 5,718.57, and the Nasdaq gained 0.1% to 17,974.27.

Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Tesla Inc, surging 4.93%, First Solar Inc jumped 3.76%, and Tapestry Inc lifted 3.65%.

The biggest decliners were Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc which dropped 4.63%, Moodys Corp fell 3.17%, and Ross Stores Inc lost 2.81%.