US stocks ended higher as aircraft maker Boeing Co rose after it said it expects the first flight of its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner by the end of 2009, boosting the Dow, and financial shares' strength helped lift the broad market.

It was the Dow's eighth straight day of gains.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 37.4 points, or 0.4 percent, to end at 9,581.00. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 2.8 points, or 0.2 percent, to finish at 1,030.98. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 3.3 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 2,027.73.

European shares fall 0.2 percent as gains in pharmaceuticals and utilities were outweighed by weakness in the beverage sector after Diageo lowered its profit target.

The FTSEurofirst 300 of top European shares is down 0.3 percent at 971.02 points, after ending a four-day winning run.

Japan's Nikkei average fell on profit-taking after hitting a 10-month closing high the day before, pressured by a stronger yen and falls in Chinese shares, with trade wary ahead of Sunday's national election.

The benchmark Nikkei pared losses to 1.6 percent or 165.74 points to 10,473.97, after earlier falling as much as 2.2 percent. The broader Topix lost 1.2 percent to 964.23.