WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian market looks set to open lower after Wall Street suffered its first loss in four sessions following a mixed bag of quarterly earnings.
At 0645 AEST on Friday, the share price index was down 29 points at 5,228.
ELSEWHERE:
WASHINGTON - The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, hitting its lowest level since 1973, suggesting the labour market continued to gain momentum despite weak economic growth.
FRANKFURT - European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has brushed off German criticism of his ultra-loose monetary policy, vowing to use all the tools at his disposal for "as long as needed".
NEW YORK - Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc, has reported a 17.4 per cent rise in quarterly revenue, driven by strong advertising sales on mobile devices.
BRUSSELS - The European Union has agreed to start free trade talks with Indonesia as the growth-hungry bloc presses for improved economic ties with Asian countries.
SAN FRANCISCO - Volkswagen AG and the US Justice Department have reached a deal in principle to address excess diesel emissions in nearly 600,000 polluting vehicles that will include buyback offers and a possible fix.
ATHENS - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has rejected the idea of more austerity measures and called for debt relief instead after the European Commission said Greece's fiscal performance was better than expected last year.
LONDON - The value of the British monarchy stands at nearly STG60 billion, according to a report released as Queen Elizabeth marked her 90th birthday.
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