The U.S. economy grew faster than first thought in the summer, as strong consumer spending offset the drag from a rundown of corporate inventories.

The U.S. trade deficit in goods widened sharply in October as exports declined amid slowing global demand and a strong dollar.

Euro zone inflation eased far more than expected in November, raising hopes that sky-high price growth is now past its peak and bolstering, if not outright sealing the case for a slowdown in European Central Bank rate hikes next month.

U.S. job openings decreased in October, but remained significantly high, pointing to continued labor market resilience despite the Federal Reserve's efforts to cool demand by aggressively raising interest rates.

Japanese companies raised spending on plant and equipment in the July-September quarter, Ministry of Finance data showed on Thursday, in a sign business investment remains resilient and a boost to recovery from a COVID-19 induced downturn.

South Korea's exports in November suffered their worst annual drop in 2-1/2 years, hurt by cooling global demand in major markets led by China and a downturn in the semiconductor industry, data showed on Thursday.