Australian shares were flat for the second day in a row on Thursday as the market weighed in on the slowing contraction of private sector activity in October.

The S&P/ASX 200 was little changed to close at 8,206.30.

Private sector activity in Australia contracted at a slower rate in October, with the S&P Judo Bank Flash Composite PMI Output Index inching up to 49.8 in October from 49.6 in September.

Flash Australia Services PMI Business Activity Index expanded to 50.6 from 50.5 on new businesses.

The Flash Manufacturing PMI Output Index contracted at a faster rate to 43.7 from September's 44, while the Flash Manufacturing PMI slipped to 46.6 from 46. Both measures were at their lowest levels in 53 months.

In corporate news, Fortescue (ASX:FMG) mined 57.1 million wet metric tonnes (wmt) of ore in the first quarter of fiscal 2025, up 2% from 56.2 million wmt in the year-ago period. Total ore processed was 48 million wmt, same as last year, while total ore shipped rose 4% to record 47.7 million wmt. Shares fell past 3% at market close.

Meanwhile, HMC Capital (ASX:HMC) agreed to acquire Global Switch Australia, which owns two adjoining data center sites in Sydney, for AU$1.94 billion as a seed asset for the Global DigiCo platform. The deal is expected to reach a financial close in the first quarter of 2025.

Lastly, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission raised concerns over Qube Holdings' (ASX:QUB) proposed acquisition of Melbourne International RoRo & Auto Terminal, or MIRRAT. The company's shares finished 1% lower.

The regulator is concerned that Qube can limit access to the terminal or related services, raising prices and lowering the quality of terminal services, as well as having access to its rival's data. To address the concerns, the logistics firm presented a court-enforceable undertaking, which is now under public consultation.