- Pakistan 'vigilantes' behind rise in online blasphemy cases
- Nearly 90, but opera legend Kabaivanska is still calling tune
- Smith experiment as Test opener over, Green out of India series
- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
- Dodgers crush Mets 9-0 in MLB playoff series opener
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone tensions soar
- Cummins back, Marsh and Head out of Pakistan ODI series
- Shanghai stocks swing after stimulus briefing as most of Asia rises
- New Zealand's Latham promises 'no fear' as he takes charge for India Tests
- Kyrgios vows to 'shut up' doubters with December comeback
- Public hearings start into death of Brit by Russian nerve agent
- Ex-Stasi officer faces verdict over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Role of government, poverty research tipped for economics Nobel
- 'Stolen satire' feeds US election misinformation
- Rookie McCarty captures first PGA Tour title in Black Desert Championship
- Australia all-rounder Green ruled out of India Test series
- Seeing double in Nigeria's 'twins capital of the world'
- UK FM to attend EU foreign affairs talks for first time in 2 years
- Carter, Billups among 13 new Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
- Ravens rip Commanders as Lions lose NFL sacks leader in win
- Hezbollah drone strike kills four, wounds dozens at Israeli base
- China says launches military drills around Taiwan
- Stewart leads Liberty past Lynx to level WNBA Finals
- England return to winning ways in Nations League, Austria thrash Norway
- UN chief says attacks on UNIFIL 'may constitute a war crime'
- Ravens outlast Commanders while Bucs batter Saints in NFL
- Dozens hurt in Israel as Hezbollah claims drone strike
- England deserve 'world class' coach: Carsley
- Burkina Faso win to become first qualifiers for 2025 AFCON
- AC Milan's Pulisic among five out for USA match in Mexico
- France's Amandine Henry retires from international football
- Centre-left set to win pro-Ukraine Lithuania's vote
- India's World Cup hopes in Pakistan hands after Australia defeat
- Zelensky says NKorea sending troops to Russian army
- England beat Finland to get back on track
- King and Lewis propel West Indies to T20 triumph over Sri Lanka
- Pre-Halloween 'Terrifier' lands atop North America box office
- 'I still plan to compete and play next season,' says Djokovic
- Harris, Trump seek advantage in knife-edge election battle
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record in Chicago
- Kamindu and Asalanka power Sri Lanka to 179 against West Indies
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record as Korir wins in Chicago
- Spain send injured Yamal home 'to prioritise player's health'
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Iraq walks fine line with pro-Iran factions to avoid war
- Race four abandoned after New Zealand breeze into 3-0 lead in America's Cup
- West Indies win toss, put Sri Lanka in to bat in first T20
- Sudan rescuers say air strike killed 23 in Khartoum market
- Netanyahu tells UN to move Lebanon peacekeepers out of 'harm's way'
Tech shares lift US stocks as yen surges
US stocks rebounded Thursday behind strong gains in tech shares ahead of key US jobs data, while the yen surged against the dollar, weighing on Japanese shares.
Artificial intelligence players Google and AMD both bounced following fresh announcements that underscored the market's appetite for the technology.
AMD surged nearly 10 percent after presenting its newest chip, the MI300, which is being positioned as a rival to a much-praised Nvidia product.
Google parent Alphabet won 5.3 percent as it demonstrated its new Gemini artificial intelligence model that the company said could outperform human experts in several areas of problem-solving, math, physics, history, law, medicine and ethics.
"This is incredible momentum, and yet, we're only beginning to scratch the surface of what's possible," Google chief executive Sundar Pichai said in a statement.
"This new era of models represents one of the biggest science and engineering efforts we've undertaken as a company."
The Nasdaq led major US indices, gaining 1.4 percent.
Most other Asian markets ended lower, and Europe's main exchanges also dipped.
Tokyo's stock index took by far the biggest fall among major indices, closing down nearly two percent as the yen surged against the dollar, which makes Japanese exports more expensive.
The yen strengthened more than two percent against the dollar on speculation the Bank of Japan (BoJ) could announce a shift away from its ultra-loose monetary policy at a meeting this month.
The Japanese currency has tumbled for much of the year owing to the BoJ's refusal to budge, but officials are shifting their positions as inflation rises.
Attention also focused on a looming US jobs report due Friday, with the idea it would confirm a gentle slowdown in the economy that could allow the US Federal Reserve to cut interest rates early next year.
After global equities rallied in November on optimism that the Fed was done with its rate-hike cycle, markets have pulled back on concerns the buying was overdone.
Data released this week on US job openings and from the private payroll firm ADP reinforced the view that the labor market and economy were slowing as inflation comes down. Jobless benefits claims data held steady.
"The slowdown in hiring continues and is becoming more obvious," said Peter Boockvar, author of the Boock Report.
"What I'm mostly focused on right now is the trajectory of activity -- and all I see is slowing in multiple places, including now the labor market."
- Key figures around 2140 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 36,117.38 (close)
New York - S&P 500: UP 0.8 percent at 4,585.59 (close)
New York - Nasdaq: UP 1.4 percent at 14,339.99 (close)
London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,513.72 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.1 percent at 7,428.52 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.2 percent at 16,628.99 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.2 percent at 4,473.77 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.8 percent at 32,858.31 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.7 percent at 16,345.89 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 2,966.21 (close)
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 144.10 yen from 147.31 yen on Wednesday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0797 from $1.0773
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2587 from $1.2560
Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.76 pence from 85.77 pence
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.1 percent at $69.34 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $74.05 per barrel
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Th.Berger--AMWN