- The dollar stood little changed at 116.84 yen JPY= after sinking 1 percent overnight. The greenback, which soared to close to 122 yen recently, was heading for a 3.5 percent loss on the week. It was poised to hand back all the gains made on the Bank of Japan's surprise decision last Friday to adopt negative interest rates.
The euro was steady at $1.1200 EUR= and headed for a 3.4 percent gain on the week, its biggest in more than four years.
The markets will look to the U.S. jobs data to set direction, with the employment report expected to show employers adding 190,000 jobs in January, the median estimate of 108 economists polled by Reuters.
- The U.S. economy remains sound and will overcome recent market turbulence, allowing the Federal Reserve to continue tightening its monetary policy as planned, a top Fed official said on Thursday.
Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said that while the global selloff in stocks and oil markets through January poses risks, she is not about to cut her expectations of continued U.S. economic growth and labor market improvement.
The comments, which echoed those this week of Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer, suggested there is a camp within the U.S. central bank that will need more hard economic evidence before abandoning a well-telegraphed plan to lift rates higher this year.
- The World Bank said on Thursday that 2015 economic growth in the Middle East and North Africa likely came to just 2.6 percent, falling short of a 2.8 percent forecast in October as war, terrorism and cheap oil took their toll.
In a new report, the bank said five years of war in Syria and spillovers to neighboring countries have cost the region some $35 billion in lost output measured in 2007 prices, equal to Syria's gross domestic product that year.
- Crude oil futures edged up in lacklustre trading on Friday as Asian liquidity faded ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday across large parts of the region.
International benchmark Brent crude futures LCOc1 were trading at $34.67 per barrel at 0149 GMT, up 21 cents from their last settlement. U.S. crude futures CLc1 were up 17 cents at $31.89 a barrel.
Traders said liquidity was low due to the Lunar New Year holiday which will last for most of next week.
Yet the overall market outlook remains bearish as long as major producers don't reach an agreement on output, with China's economic slowdown now showing signs of spreading across the world.
- IRAN SAYS OPEC, NON-OPEC NATIONS NEED TO MEET SOON: INTERFAX
Reference: Reuters, MKS Group
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