• The current level of U.S. prices is noticeably lower than what it would be if the Federal Reserve had delivered on its 2-percent inflation target, St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said, calling the trend "worrisome."
But Bullard said that a surge in inflation is unlikely even if unemployment falls further.
With inflation still below 2 percent and inflation expectations and Treasury yields falling since the Fed raised rates in March, the Fed's plans for rate increases may be "overly aggressive" he said.
• President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, a senior White House adviser, is under scrutiny by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the Russia probe, the Washington Post and NBC News reported on Thursday
• In a stinging rebuke to President Donald Trump, a U.S. appeals court refused on Thursday to reinstate his travel ban on people from six Muslim-majority nations, calling it discriminatory and setting the stage for a showdown in the Supreme Court.
• Japan's core consumer prices rose 0.3 percent in April from a year earlier to mark a fourth straight month of increases, offering policymakers some hope a steady economic recovery will convince consumers to start spending again. But the increase was due largely to the fading effect of last year's energy price falls, underscoring the challenges the Bank of Japan still faces after years of heavy monetary stimulus to reach its ambitious 2 percent inflation target.
• China's structural reforms will not be enough to arrest its rising debt, and another credit rating downgrade for the country is possible unless it gets its ballooning credit in check, two officials at Moody's ratings agency said on Friday.
• Islamic state clamed responsibility for Jakarta bus station attacks that left at least three policemen dead and 12 others wounded on Wednesday.
The attack was the deadliest in Indonesia since January 2016, when eight people were killed, four of them attackers, after suicide bombers and gunmen attacked the capital.
• Oil prices edged up on Friday but markets remained on the back foot after tumbling in the previous session when OPEC and allied producers extended output cuts but disappointed investors betting on longer or larger curbs.
Crude oil plunged 5 percent following the announcement, only inching up a touch on Friday.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures <CLc1> were below $50, at $49.15, though still up 16 cents from their last close.
Gaining back some of those losses, Brent crude futures <LCOc1> were at $51.83 per barrel at 0708 GMT, up 0.37 cents, or 0.7 percent, from their last close.
Reference: Reuters
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