·       European stock markets traded slightly on Thursday as uncertainty continues to dominate investor sentiment.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 hovered around the flatline, with all three major indexes - FTSE, the German DAX and the French CAC - in negative territory.

Stocks took cue from their Asian counterparts Thursday as caution sets in over the ongoing political impasse in the U.S., the global economic outlook and potential outcome of U.S.-China trade talks.

An interest rate decision by the European Central Bank (ECB) will also be announced at 12:45 p.m. London time. The central bank is not expected to make any policy announcements, however, although it may acknowledge a sharp slowdown in growth, raising the prospect that any further policy normalization could be delayed, Reuters reported.

·       Asian shares inched up in subdued trade on Thursday after Wall Street ended higher, but political uncertainty in the United States and worries about weakening global economic growth kept many investors on the sidelines.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS added 0.3 percent, while Japan's Nikkei average .N225 eased 0.1 percent.

Analysts at Capital Economics warned that China’s economic slowdown looks set to be of a similar scale to that in 2015-16, though there are some significant differences so far, most notably less downward pressure on the yuan and no signs of major capital outflows.

·       Japan’s Nikkei ended almost flat on Thursday weighed down by a fall in index heavyweight Fast Retailing, but strong earnings from Texas Instruments boosted chip-related shares, supporting the broader market.

The Nikkei share average dipped 0.09 percent to 20,574.63, hit by a 3.1 percent fall in Fast Retailing, which accounts for more than 9 percent of the Nikkei. But it managed to stay above its 25-day moving average at 20,451.

“Basically, investors are in a wait-and-see mode ahead of earnings. It’s becoming clear that the impact of U.S.-China trade frictions is not negligible,” said Takaaki Yoshino, head of investment technology office at Nissay Asset Management.

·       China’s main stock indexes ended higher on Thursday as solid profit growth at China Merchants Bank lifted financial shares, but continued uncertainty over trade and the economy capped gains.

At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.41 percent at 2,591.69. The blue-chip CSI300 index ended 0.56 percent higher.

China’s economy can maintain sustainable rates of growth despite global uncertainties, Vice President Wang Qishan said on Wednesday, days after the world’s second-largest economy posted its weakest expansion in nearly three decades.