Aust stocks open sharply lower

The Australian stock market opened sharply lower following falls on Wall Street where Twitter made a strong market debut.

At the 1015 AEDT official market open, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index fell 0.76% to 5,380.7 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index retreated 0.75%, at 5,374.9.

Wall Street's falls came after data surprisingly showed the world's biggest economy grew at an annual rate of 2.8% in the third quarter, well above the 1.9% projected by analysts.

Locally, in economic news on Friday, the Reserve Bank of Australia releases its statement on monetary policy.

In equities news, Commonwealth Bank, Hills Holdings and Ardent Leisure have annual general meetings scheduled.

In Australia, the market on Thursday slipped, dragged down by the ANZ and National Australia Bank which paid out their final dividends.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 11.8 points, or 0.22%, at 5,422.

The broader All Ordinaries index was down 10.6 points, or 0.2%, at 5,415.4.