EU finance ministers on Thursday agreed to scrap a bloc-wide duty exemption on low-value orders from the likes of retail giants Temu and Shein to help tackle a flood of cheap Chinese imports.

Switzerland's economy minister Guy Parmelin was back in Washington for talks on Thursday, for the third time since the Alpine country was clobbered with huge tariffs.

World shares mostly gained on Thursday after U.S. stocks settled near their records and U.S. President Donald Trump signed a government funding bill, ending the record 43-day shutdown.

The future for S&P 500 edged up 0.1% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% ahead of the reopening of the federal government following the standoff that caused financial stress for federal workers who went without paychecks, stranded scores of travelers at airports and generated long lines at some food banks.

Economic growth in the U.K. slowed down to a near standstill in the third quarter of the year, official figures showed Thursday, in what is a blow to the British government less than two weeks ahead of a crucial budget that is expected to see taxes rise again.

The Office for National Statistics said that the economy grew by 0.1% between July and September from the previous three-month period. That was down on the previous quarter's 0.3% increase and below market expectations for a 0.2% rise.

President Donald Trump signed a government funding bill Wednesday night, ending a record 43-day shutdown that caused financial stress for federal workers who went without paychecks, stranded scores of travelers at airports and generated long lines at some food banks.

The shutdown magnified partisan divisions in Washington as Trump took unprecedented unilateral actions — including canceling projects and trying to fire federal workers — to pressure Democrats into relenting on their demands.

Asian shares were mixed Wednesday in cautious trading after most U.S. stocks rose, settling back to where they were before last week's swoon over the future of artificial intelligence.

U.S. futures edged higher while oil prices declined.

Wall Street is on track to open higher Wednesday with an end to the U.S. government shutdown appearing closer, and technology stocks appeared to regain their footing after wild swings this week.

Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.4% while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.3%. Futures for the technology-heavy Nasdaq index rose 0.6%.

Spanish King Felipe VI and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed agreements on language exchanges and other areas Wednesday as both sides vowed to strengthen their cooperation.

The monarch's visit comes as Spain, the eurozone's fourth-largest economy, continues its courtship of China and Chinese investment while the relationship with the United States is strained under President Donald Trump. In April, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, head of the country's government, made his third visit to China in as many years.

The longest government shutdown in history could conclude as soon as today, Day 43, with almost no one happy with the final result.

Democrats didn't get the heath insurance provisions they demanded added to the spending deal. And Republicans, who control the levers of power in Washington, didn't escape blame, according to polls and some state and local elections that went poorly for them.

Shares advanced in Europe on Tuesday after a retreat in Asia, as investors took the latest step toward ending the U.S. government shutdown in stride.

Markets showed little reaction after the Senate passed legislation to reopen the government.