US business inventories rose by a larger than expected 1pct to $1.51 trillion - the highest level since October 2008. Business sales fell 0.1pct in May. The inventory to sales ratio rose modestly to 1.28 months. US jobless claims fell by 22,000 to 405,000 last week.

[Kick off your day with Global Markets Daily]

US retail sales rose by 0.1pct in June as stronger sales at car dealerships offset a slide in gasoline sales. In fact excluding gasoline, sales rose by 0.3pct. Clothing store receipts rose 0.7pct while sales of electronics and appliances dipped 0.2pct. US producer prices fell by a much larger than expected 0.4pct in June - marking the biggest drop in 18 months. Core producer prices (excluding food & energy) climbed 0.3pct.

European shares tracked lower on Thursday losing ground for the fourth time in five sessions. The euro zone debt crisis continued to dominate sentiment. The European banking sector fell 0.8pct ahead of the stress test results from 90 banks which was set for release after the close. The FTSEurofirst index fell by 0.9pct, with the German Dax down 0.7pct and the UK FTSE lower by 1pct.

US sharemarkets fell on Thursday, after Fed Chairman Bernanke downplayed any potential near term stimulus for the US economy. Bernanke made mention of the fact that ´´inflation is higher now than late last year´´ and conditions were different when QE2 was launched. The Dow Jones fell by almost 55pts or 0.4pct. The S&P 500 lost 0.7pct and the Nasdaq fell 34pts or 1.2pct.

US treasuries were mixed as the Moody´s US credit review offset the worries over contagion from the euro-zone debt crisis. US 2yr yields fell by 1pt to 0.371pct and US 10yr yields rose by 4pts to 2.953pct.

The US dollar rallied against major currencies after Fed chief Ben Bernanke hosed down expectations about another round of stimulus. The Euro fell from highs near US$1.4250 to lows around US$1.4120, ending US trade at US$1.4135. The Aussie dollar fell from US107.85c to US106.95c before ending US trade near US107.10c. And the Japanese yen eased from 78.85 yen per US dollar to JPY79.25, and ended US trade near JPY79.15.

US crude oil prices fell on Thursday after Fed Chairman Bernanke said the central bank was not ready to add further stimulus to the economy. Nymex crude oil fell by US$2.36 to US$95.69 a barrel and London Brent crude fell by US$1.59 to US$116.26 a barrel.

Base metal prices were mostly weaker on the London Metal Exchange on Thursday except Nickel which rose 1pct. And the gold price hit fresh record highs as the greenback sank. Comex gold rose by US$3.80 an ounce or 0.2pct to US$1,589.30.

Ahead: In Australia, no economic data is released. In the US, data on consumer prices, industrial production and capacity utilisation are released.

More from IBT Markets:
Follow us on Facebook.
Follow us on Twitter.
Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox daily