09:07 AM EDT, 05/09/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity futures were little changed ahead of Thursday's opening bell as traders digested the weekly jobless claims.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.1%, while S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures were both flat.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 0.8% and US West Texas Intermediate crude up 0.9%, after official data showed a 1.4 million-barrel weekly decline in US crude stockpiles.

New unemployment claims, released at 8:30 am ET, rose to 231,000 in the week ended May 4 from 209,000 in the preceding week, compared with estimates compiled by Bloomberg for 212,000 claims.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 0.3% lower, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 1.2% higher, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 0.8% higher. Meanwhile, UK's FTSE 100 gained 0.3%, and Germany's DAX index rose 0.9% in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, shares of AppLovin ( APP ) were more than 14% higher pre-bell after the company reported it swung to Q1 earnings on higher revenue. Yeti Holdings ( YETI ) shares were up almost 16% on improved fiscal Q1 financial results.

On the losing side, Roblox ( RBLX ) shares fell more than 26% after the company reported Q1 revenue that trailed analysts' estimates. Forward Air ( FWRD ) shares were 33% lower after the company reported it swung to a Q1 adjusted loss.