Gold prices fell from record highs in Asian trade on Thursday as a rally in the yellow metal cooled, with market focus remaining on U.S. interest rate cuts and brewing fears of a recession.

U.S. stock index futures rose slightly in evening deals on Wednesday, extending gains from Wall Street as the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s recent meeting fueled growing conviction that the central bank will cut rates. 

Oil prices fell in Asian trade on Thursday, extending a run of recent losses as weak U.S. labor data fueled concerns over an economic slowdown in the country and largely offset optimism over interest rate cuts.

BlackRock, the world's biggest asset manager, cut its support for shareholder proposals linked to environmental and social issues to a fresh low of 4.1% in the most recent annual general meeting season, it said on Wednesday.

The dollar fell to a more than one-year low against the euro and sterling on Wednesday after data showed employers added 818,000 fewer jobs in the year to March than previously thought.

A sharp sell-off in crude oil paused on Thursday after expectations of a rate cut by the Federal Reserve offset a bunch of weak economic data from the world's two largest economies, the United States and China.