Australia

Australian shares are set to edge lower, after Wall Street falls for its fourth straight session.
ASX futures were down 70 points or 1% at 6838 as of 7:00am on Thursday, pointing to a slip at the open.

US stocks fell across the board Wednesday, marking the fourth straight day of declines driven by an expectation of tighter Federal Reserve policy. They were down about 4% for the month.

At 4 p.m. ET, the S&P 500 was down 0.8%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell about 280 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.6%. Ten of the S&P 500's 11 sectors were in the red, with communication services the sole riser on the day.

Stocks have come under pressure in the wake of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole, Wyo., where he said interest rates must be raised further until inflation is under control, despite higher recession risk.

"Federal Reserve speakers are stressing that the central bank will not pivot away from tightening anytime soon," said Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist at LPL Financial. "The question now is how much pain the Fed will deliver, and how long it will take to bring down inflation. The market is trying find an equilibrium with where stocks should be valued based on those expectations."

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil slipped 2.84% to $US96.49 a barrel, gold edged down 0.8% to US$1,710.55

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds dropped to 2.95% while the 10 Year fell to 3.59%. Overseas, the yield on 2 Year US Treasury notes declined to 3.49% and the yield on the 10 Year US Treasury notes was down at 3.19%.

The Australian dollar hit 68.63 US cents up from the previous close of 68.53. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies edged down to 100.23.

Asia

Chinese shares finished the day lower as auto makers, renewable-energy sectors and miners all fell. Investors appear unsure about markets' direction, while the Fed's tightening and U.S. dollar strength will affect global capital markets, China Fortune Securities says in a note. BYD Co. slid 7.4% after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway cut its stake. Electric-car battery maker CATL extended losing streak to the sixth session, down 1.7%, and Ganfeng Lithium retreated 5.4%. Among gainers, China Vanke rose 4.7% after 1H net profit increased 11%. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.8% to 3202.14, down 1.6% in August. The Shenzhen Composite Index dropped 1.9% and the ChiNext Price Index was 1.6% lower.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended flat at 19954.39, as gains among tech and consumer-related sectors offset losses by auto makers. U.S. stock futures were higher after three straight days of losses on Wall Street, while investors parsed the latest company earnings. BYD Co. slid 7.9% after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway cut its stake in the auto maker. Haidilao topped gainers with a 6.5% rise after its 1H results, with analysts noting improvement in its financial position. Baidu lost 3.3% after 2Q revenue declined on year. But Meituan and Tencent Holdings added 2.6% and 1.1%, respectively. Property company CIFI Holdings slumped 15% after its private-placement plans.

The Nikkei Stock Average pared its early losses to end 0.4% lower at 28091.53. Developments relating to government monetary policies will be closely watched, following comments by the Bank of Japan policy board member Junko Nakagawa on Wednesday that the bank will continue its monetary easing until sustainable wage growth and price increases are achieved. Financial stocks were lower, amid concerns that Fed policy tightening may be more aggressive than expected following strong U.S. labor-market data. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group lost 1.0%, while Aozora Bankand Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group each slipped 0.5%.

Europe

European indices ended the day lower. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 1.01% the German DAX index was down 1% while the French CAC was down 1.37%.

A data release showed inflation in the eurozone rose to 9.1% in August, notching a record. A major gas pipeline that connects Western Europe to Russia was shut down on Wednesday for maintenance, causing concern that supplies may not resume.

In London, the FTSE 100 fell again on Wednesday, as a slide in energy prices is hurting oil majors BP and Shell. London's blue-chip index closed 1.1% lower, with Shell falling 2.1% and BP down 1.7%. Energy infrastructure companies National Grid and SSE were the worst performers on Wednesday, closing 4.1% and 3.4% lower respectively.

"Up until the end of last week, the FTSE 100 had been on course for a positive month, however the last 3 days, and the hawkish tone from Powell's Jackson Hole speech, has seen the rug pulled out from underneath the positive mood," Michael Hewson from CMC Markets UK said.

North America

US stocks fell across the board Wednesday, marking the fourth straight day of declines driven by an expectation of tighter Federal Reserve policy. They were down about 4% for the month.

At 4 p.m. ET, the S&P 500 was down 0.8%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell about 280 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.6%. Ten of the S&P 500's 11 sectors were in the red, with communication services the sole riser on the day.

Stocks have come under pressure in the wake of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole, Wyo., where he said interest rates must be raised further until inflation is under control, despite higher recession risk.

"Federal Reserve speakers are stressing that the central bank will not pivot away from tightening anytime soon," said Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist at LPL Financial. "The question now is how much pain the Fed will deliver, and how long it will take to bring down inflation. The market is trying find an equilibrium with where stocks should be valued based on those expectations."

New York Fed President John Williams said Tuesday that combating high inflation is likely to require lifting the central bank's benchmark short-term interest rate above 3.5% and holding it at that level through next year.

Investors are now turning their eyes to the health of the labor market for a read on the future path of Fed policy, with Friday's jobs report in focus.

"The August report is important; if wages pressures come down and there are less job openings, that could be a positive catalyst for stocks," added Ms. Krosby.

ADP's employment report for August, released Wednesday, showed private-sector employers added a lower-than-expected 132,000 jobs, a sign the labor market cooled amid slowing economic growth and recession fears. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected an increase of 300,000 jobs.

In 4 p.m. trading, the shares of pet retailer Chewy were down 7.9% after it lowered sales guidance for the year, citing changing consumer habits. Bed Bath & Beyond shares plunged 21%. The retailer and meme stock said it plans to close roughly 150 of its flagship stores, cut its workforce and bring in fresh financing.