Global Stocks

European stocks finished lower Wednesday, with energy shares slightly paring losses as oil prices came off session lows. Investors also expressed disappointment over a new round of financial updates.

U.S. stocks closed mostly lower Wednesday as Apple Inc., the largest U.S. company by market cap, tumbled, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend thanks to Boeing Inc., which soared on robust earnings.

The S&P 500 SPX, -0.17% slipped 3.73 points, or 0.2%, to end at 2,139.43, while the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, -0.63% which is heavily weighted toward technology names, fell 33.13 points, or 0.6%, to finish at 5,250.27. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.17% rose 30.06 points, or 0.2%, to close at 18,199.33.

Asian shares extended losses on Thursday after disappointing earnings from technology giant Apple dragged on Wall Street, while the dollar remained shy of this week's nearly nine-month highs.

Adding to the already subdued mood, data showed profit growth in China's industrial firms slowed last month from the previous month's rapid pace as several sectors showed weak activity, suggesting the world's second-biggest economy remains underpowered.

Tokyo's Nikkei stock index .N225 percent slumped 0.5 percent, though a weaker yen underpinned shares.