- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Ex-Stasi officer jailed over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as markets rally
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as Asian markets rally
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- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
- Ex-Stasi officer faces verdict over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Role of government, poverty research tipped for economics Nobel
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- In a first, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Bangladeshi Hindus shrug off attack worries to celebrate festival
- Ubisoft fears assassin's hit over falling sales
- Vietnam, China hold talks on calming South China Sea tensions
- SpaceX will try to 'catch' giant Starship rocket shortly before landing
- Japan's former empress Michiko discharged after surgery: reports
- Japan's former empress Michiko discharged after surgey: reports
- 'Little Gregory' murder haunts France 40 years on
- Tariffs, tax cuts, energy: What is in Trump's economic plan?
- Amazon wants to be everything to everyone
- Jewish school in Canada hit by gunfire for second time
- With medical report Harris seeks to play health card against Trump
- China-EU EV tariff talks in Brussels end with 'major differences': Beijing
- Buried Nazi past haunts Athens on liberation anniversary
- Harris to release medical report confirming fitness for presidency: campaign
- Nobel prize a timely reminder, Hiroshima locals say
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Small Quebec company dominates one part of NHL hockey: jerseys
- Boeing to cut 10% of workforce as it sees big Q3 loss
- Want to film in Paris? No sexism allowed
- US, European markets rise as investors weigh rates, earnings
- In Colombia, children trade plastic waste for school supplies
- JPMorgan Chase profits top estimates, bank sees 'resilient' US economy
- Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
- 'Party atmosphere': Skygazers treated to another aurora show
- Kyrgyzstan opens rare probe into glacier destruction
- European Mediterranean states discuss Middle East, migration
- Thunberg leads pro-Palestinian, climate protest in Milan
- Stock markets diverge before China weekend briefing
- EU questions shopping app Temu over illegal products risk
- Han Kang's books sell out in South Korea after Nobel win
- Shanghai markets sink ahead of briefing on mixed day for Asia
- Investors, analysts eye bigger China stimulus at Saturday briefing
- Musk unveils robotaxi, pledges it 'before 2027'
- At least 11 dead in Florida but Hurricane Milton not as bad as feared
- Asian markets mixed after Wall St drop, Shanghai dips before briefing
- Automaker Stellantis says CEO will retire in 2026
- Musk's promised robotaxi unveil delayed
- On US coast, wind power foes embrace 'Save the Whales' argument
Stock markets mixed awaiting key US rate decision
European stock markets dropped after gains in Asia Friday as investors awaited next week's crucial interest-rate decision from the US Federal Reserve.
The dollar was higher against main rivals, while the Turkish lira sat around record lows against the greenback.
Newly re-elected President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appointed former Wall Street executive Hafize Gaye Erkan as central bank governor, signalling a possible shift in his unconventional policies to fight inflation.
Erkan, the first woman to head the Turkish central bank, is a former chief executive of US real estate finance firm Greystone, co-CEO of First Republic Bank and managing director at Goldman Sachs.
Oil prices steadied Friday at the end of a volatile week for the commodity following Saudi Arabia's decision to slash output.
Expectations that the Federal Reserve will hold off raising interest rates on Wednesday for the first time since starting its hiking cycle last year to combat high inflation have pushed equities higher for most of the month.
Market expectation was thrown off course, however, after the Bank of Canada's surprise lift and a similar move in Australia this week.
The Australian and Canadian central banks "are raising rates in part because they think the Fed will hike once more and if they fail to match this they risk" a weakening of their currencies, said analyst Krishna Guha at Evercore ISI.
Despite the rate rises elsewhere, analysts believe news of a forecast-busting jump in US jobless claims to the highest since October 2021 will cause the Fed to pause until next month.
All three main US indices ended higher Thursday, with the S&P 500 entering a bull market after rising more than 20 percent from its October low.
Analysts said a pick-up in industrial stocks indicated a broadening of the rally while others said the United States could even avoid a recession, which many had feared would happen because of the surge in interest rates over the past year.
Europe's leading stock markets were trading lower Friday, a day after official data showed the eurozone had fallen into recession.
- China stimulus talk -
Elsewhere, eyes are on China where there is growing speculation that authorities will unveil fresh stimulus measures to kickstart the world's number two economy, with the post-zero-Covid rally already fading.
Disappointing readings on manufacturing activity and trade this week have compounded the view that officials need to step in, with reports suggesting the People's Bank of China will cut interest rates soon.
Expectations were ramped up Thursday after a key government adviser said borrowing costs should come down to help struggling firms' financing ability.
The need for action was reinforced Friday by Chinese data showing consumer inflation essentially flat in May and wholesale prices falling more than expected.
"On the whole, the muted inflation environment may call into question the sustainability of the economic recovery, but it also provides a favourable backdrop for policymakers to roll out more policy support," said HSBC's Erin Xin.
- Key figures around 1045 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.4 percent at 7,572.08 points
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.3 percent at 15,938.18
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,198.74
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.3 percent at 4,284.68
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 2.0 percent at 32,265.17 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.5 percent at 19,389.95 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,231.41 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 0.5 percent at 33,833.61 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0761 from $1.0785 on Thursday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2551 from $1.2560
Dollar/yen: UP at 139.63 yen from 138.89 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.74 percent from 85.82 pence
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.1 percent at $76.03 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: FLAT at $71.30 per barrel
X.Wong--CPN