• The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 22.51 points, or 0.09 percent, to 25,974.99, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 8.12 points, or 0.28 percent, to 2,888.6 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 96.07 points, or 1.19 percent, to7,995.17.

The Nasdaq fell more than 1 percent on Wednesday, dented by technology stocks after Facebook Inc (FB.O) and Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) executives defended their companies before skeptical U.S. lawmakers.

Adding to pressure on technology stocks, the Justice Department later said it would meet with state attorneys general to discuss worries that social media platforms were “intentionally stifling the free exchange of ideas.” Facebook and Twitter were not specifically named.

• Emerging market stocks led declines in indexes across the globe on Wednesday as investors positioned themselves more defensively while a deadline in the U.S.-China trade conflict loomed and U.S.-Canada trade talks resumed.

Weakness in emerging market currencies offered some support to the dollar, which retreated modestly, as the euro rose and Britain’s sterling regained some ground in volatile trading after a four-day losing streak.

• Asia's stock indexes were lower on Thursday morning following a sell-off in tech stocks overnight on Wall Street.

The Nikkei 225 saw a decline of 0.33 percent during the early hours of trading action, as video game company Nintendo's stock dropped around 2.5 percent. South Korea's Kospi was also lower by 0.12 percent, with major tech names such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix all trading down.

Reference: Reuters, CNBC