HONG KONG — Souteast Asian markets closed mixed and Europe's main stock markets slid at the start of trading.
Manila closed 0.44% higher, adding 34.76 points to 7,871.10 but Kuala Lumpur was flat, dipping 0.68 points to end at 1,818.42.
Singapore rose 0.37%, or 12.57 points, to 3,431.59, while Jakarta ended down 0.68%, or 36.69 points, at 5,368.80.
Taipei fell 0.50%, or 48.71 points, to 9,619.12.
Tokyo tumbled 1.39%, or 275.08 points, to 19,471.12 after touching a 15-year high this week, while Sydney sank 1.58%, or 94.22 points, to close at 5,879.1 and Seoul fell 0.99%, or 20.25 points, to 2,022.56.
Hong Kong lost 0.13%, dropping 31.15 points to 24,497.08, but Shanghai gained 0.58%, or 21.37 points, to 3,682.10, having fallen Wednesday for the first time in 11 sessions.
In Europe, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index dropped 0.53% to 6,953.98 points.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 index shed 1.09% to 11,736.34 points and the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.57% to stand at 4,992.55 compared with Wednesday's close.
Investors ran for the sidelines, first in New York on Wednesday, after the US Commerce Department said durable goods orders fell in February.
The news will likely put back the US Federal Reserve's timeline on when to raise interest rates, while fuelling fears about the global outlook according to analysts.