Australia

Australian shares are set to open lower, after a mixed session on Wall Street.

ASX futures were down 0.2% or 19 points as of 8:00am on Thursday, suggesting a lower open.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose Wednesday, extending its longest winning streak of the year.

The blue-chip index gained 0.4%, or 172 points, the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.2%, and the S&P 500 fell by just three-hundredths of a point.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was up 0.5% to US$83.58 a barrel, while gold was up 0.1% at US$2,310.63.

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds was up at 3.99% while the 10 Year yield was down at 4.29%. US Treasury notes were mixed, with the 2 Year yield up at 4.84% and the 10 Year yield down at 4.49%.

The Australian dollar was 65.77 US cents. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, was up at 99.95.

Asia

Chinese shares ended lower, weighed by software technology and property stocks. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.6% at 3128.48 in a possible technical correction after gaining for six sessions in the past seven trading days. The Shenzhen Composite Index was 1.3% lower, while the ChiNext Price Index dropped 1.45%. Among decliners, iFlytek was 2.8% lower, 360 Security Technology declined 5.7% and Poly Developments & Holdings dropped 3.1%. Advancers included Bank of Communications, which added 1.5%, and Agricultural Bank of China, which gained 1.1%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed 0.9% lower at 18313.86, weighed by property stocks, on likely profit-taking after shares rallied the past two weeks. "The valuation gap with its global peers suggests room for further catch-up" should hopes for stabilizing economic conditions continue, Yeap Jun Rong, market analyst at IG, writes in a commentary. Among decliners, Longfor Group fell 7.6%, Country Garden Services shed 5.7% and China Resources Land was down 5.2%. Budweiser Brewing Co. APAC lost 3.85% after reporting a decline in quarterly revenue and net profit. Among gainers, Xiaomi rose 6.5%, China Shenhua Energy gained 1.6% and Sinopharm Group was 1.5% higher.

Japanese stocks ended lower, dragged by falls in electronics and brokerage stocks, as caution grows about the strength of corporate earnings. Sony Group fell 5.0% and Nomura Holdings dropped 3.4%. Nintendo shedded 5.4% after it projected a 39% drop in fiscal-year net profit. Toyota Motor declined 0.6% after it projected net profit to drop 28% this fiscal year. The Nikkei Stock Average fell 1.6% to 38202.37. Investors remain focused on earnings and U.S. economic data. The 10-year Japanese government bond yield rises half a basis point to 0.875%.

Indian shares ended slightly lower, weighed by the financial sector. The benchmark Sensex fell 0.1% to 73466.39.Investors are digesting the latest corporate earnings and more hints on the U.S. Fed's rate path. HDFC Bank dropped 1.6% and ICICI Bank fell 0.8%. Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv lost 1.05% and 0.8%, respectively. Meanwhile, Tata Motors led gains, up 2.4%. Larsen & Toubro rose 1.5% ahead of its results due later in the day. Among individual movers, household-appliance maker Voltas dropped 5.0% after 4Q net profit fell 23% on year.

Europe

Stocks in the U.K. rose Wednesday, as the FTSE 100 Index increased 0.5% to 8354.05.

Among large companies, John Wood Group PLC was the biggest gainer during the session, surging 17% to GBP192.90, and OSB Group PLC surged 5.3% to GBP451.60. J.D. Wetherspoon PLC rounded out the top three movers on Wednesday, as shares gained 4.3% to GBP759.00.

Renishaw PLC posted the largest decline, falling 4.2% to GBP3,980.00, followed by shares of Ocado Group PLC, which fell 3.9% to GBP345.90. Shares of IntegraFin Holdings PLC fell 2.3% to GBP296.50.

European shares ended Wednesday higher, with the Stoxx Europe 600 index gaining 0.3% to finish at 515.77, the CAC 40 added 0.7% to 8,131.41 and the DAX 40 rose 0.4% to 18,498.38.

North America

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose Wednesday, extending its longest winning streak of the year.

The blue-chip index gained 0.4%, or 172 points, logging a sixth straight day of gains. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.2%. The S&P 500 fell by just three-hundredths of a point, its smallest move since 2018. All three indexes remain higher to start May after dropping in April.

The slight decline for the benchmark S&P 500 broke a four-day winning streak. Stocks had edged higher in recent days, helped by a batch of solid corporate earnings reports and hopes that the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates.

Investors on Wednesday digested the latest results from companies including Uber, Shopify and Reddit. With the first-quarter earnings season nearing its end, S&P 500 companies are growing earnings by 5.3%, according to a FactSet blend of actual results and analysts' forecasts. That would mark the highest rate since the second quarter of 2022.

Some investors are in a wait-and-see mode ahead of reports on consumer and producer inflation next week. Expectations for rate cuts this year had dimmed after a string of stickier-than-expected inflation reports. April's jobs report, however, showed a slowdown in hiring, lifting optimism for lower rates.

"Any weakness or pullback that we see, it's just in relationship to what inflation is doing and what the Fed reaction function is," said Dan Close, who leads Nuveen's municipal bond arm.

Some investors see signs of more appetite for risk in the market. The corporate bond market saw the busiest two-day stretch in volume for deals since the start of the year on Monday and Tuesday, during which companies issued $36 billion worth of debt, said Close.

"A lot of companies are getting their financing lined up in a very favorable environment," he said, citing tighter credit spreads, or lower average yields on corporate bonds when compared with similar Treasurys.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield edged higher Wednesday, settling at 4.491%. Bond prices rise when yields fall.

Recent remarks from Federal Reserve officials suggested interest rates may have to stay elevated for longer before the central bank can bring inflation back to its 2% target.

"I remain optimistic that this can be accomplished in a reasonable amount of time and with a labor market that remains healthy," said Boston Fed President Susan Collins in remarks prepared for a Wednesday speech at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"I think the main message is that they are just not ready to cut right now," said Kevin Gordon, senior investment strategist at Charles Schwab, of recent remarks from Fed officials.

Among individual movers, Shopify shares sank 19% after the online-retail services company said it expects sales growth to slow this quarter. Intel dropped 2.2% after the company said its revenue for the current quarter would be lower than previously expected amid new restrictions on sales by chip makers to Chinese telecom company Huawei Technologies.

Lyft jumped 7.1% after the ride-hailing company's revenue grew and its loss narrowed last quarter. Meanwhile, rival Uber tumbled 5.7% after the ride-hailing company posted a surprise quarterly loss. Shares of Reddit climbed 4% after the social-media company posted higher revenue and a wider loss for the first quarter.