The Bank of Japan upgraded its assessment of the economy for the first time in three years on Friday, saying a rebound in global demand could mean the record contraction last quarter was the worst of the recession. The BOJ also said it would start accepting foreign bonds as collateral for loans to ease strains
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European shares rose by midday on Friday with gains in banking and mining stocks overshadowing weakness in drugmakers and falls in British Airways after the company made a record loss. By 1039 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.2 percent at 859.61 points in a choppy session having been up
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Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Friday, after the previous session's sell-off, with General Motors (GM.N) in focus after sources said Washington has no plans to push the troubled carmaker into bankruptcy. * At 5 a.m. EDT, futures for the S&P 500 were up 0.57 percent, Dow Jones futures
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Oil firmed above $61 on Friday as fundamental support came from consumer nations such as China, the United States and Africa's top producer Nigeria after weeks of equity-led rallies. U.S. crude futures were up 71 cents at $61.76 a barrel by 0918 GMT. It hit a six-month high of $62.26 this week. London Brent <LCOc1
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Britain's economy shrank at its sharpest quarterly rate since 1979 in the first three months of the year, official data confirmed on Friday, with household spending falling at its fastest rate since 1980. The Office for National Statistics' second estimate of economic activity showed GDP fell 1.9 percent on the quarter, its biggest drop since
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OPEC ministers are expected to make no change to oil supply when they meet in Vienna next week as higher prices ease their concerns about overflowing fuel inventories and the deepest fall in demand for years. Oil has rallied to a six-month high of more than $60 a barrel this week, almost double last December's
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Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.5 percent on Friday as strength in miners, buoyed by rebounding metal prices and positive broker notes, outweighed some weakness in banks. By 0857 GMT the blue-chip index was 23.08 points higher at 4,368.55 after sliding 122.94 points in the previous session. The index is down 1.8 percent this year but
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The dollar fell to a 2009 low on Friday as fears intensified that the United States could lose its triple-A rating, while renewed caution about the world economy and banks prompted Asian and European stocks to slip. The dollar's latest decline started when ratings agency Standard & Poor's cut its ratings outlook on Britain to
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The Bank of Japan signalled on Friday that the worst of the global crisis may be over for the world's second-largest economy, which shrank at a record pace in the first three months of the year. The central bank upgraded its view on the economy for the first time in almost three years while keeping
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British Airways slumped to a record loss, nearly doubled its debt pile and cancelled its dividend, adding the tough conditions made it impossible to give any guidance for the current period. Europe's third-biggest airline by revenue posted operating losses of 220 mln pounds ($347.5 mln) on Friday, compared to a profit of 875 mln pounds
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