Global Shares Higher Thursday

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- European stocks were higher while some Asian markets recovered from the previous day's losses on Thursday as investors focused on the U.S. tax reform and an upcoming U.S. jobs report.

KEEPING SCORE: Britain's FTSE 200 rose 0.3 percent to 7,366.77 while France's CAC 40 added 0.2 percent to 5,383.07. Germany's DAX gained 0.2 percent to 13,028.86. Futures augured flat opening on Wall Street. Dow futures remained unchanged while S&P futures added 0.1 percent.

ASIA'S DAY: Asia closed mixed. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 jumped 1.5 percent to 22,498.03 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5 percent to 5,977.70. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index reversed earlier losses, adding 0.3 percent to 28,303.19. Most other regional benchmarks fell. The Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.7 percent to 3,272.05 and South Korea's Kospi lost 0.5 percent to 2,461.98. Stocks in Southeast Asia were mixed.

ANALYST'S VIEW: "Asia equity investors found themselves standing in a sea of pain at yesterday's market close and are likely breathing a sigh of relief that both EU and U.S. equity investors appear a bit more level-headed for the time being," said Stephen Innes, head of trading at OANDA.

TAX: The U.S. Senate voted to begin negotiation with the House to reconcile their two tax bills on Wednesday in a sign that they can iron out differences. Republican leaders are pushing to send a final blended package to President Donald Trump to sign before Christmas.

GEOPOLITICAL ISSUES: Market reaction was muted to President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, ending decades of unwavering U.S. neutrality on the issue. In other global developments, the British and Irish prime ministers spoke, seeking to overcome a logjam in Brexit talks, but there was no sign of an imminent breakthrough.

U.S. JOBS: A report from payroll processor ADP showed private employers added 190,000 jobs last month, slightly better than expected. The report comes two days before a government jobs report, among the last key economic indicators before the Federal Reserve's meeting next week.

OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude recovered slightly. It added 7 cents to $56.13 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Wednesday, the contract sank $1.66 to settle at $55.96 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 29 cents to $61.51 per barrel. It lost $1.64 to $61.22 a barrel on Wednesday.

CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 112.66 Japanese yen from 112.27 yen while the euro weakened to $1.1790 from $1.1796.

(BE)