- 'Bullet for democracy': Trump returns to site of rally shooting
- Italy targets climate activists in 'anti-Gandhi' demo clampdown
- South Korean cult-horror series 'Hellbound' returns at BIFF
- Nepalis fear more floods as climate change melts glaciers
- Honduras arrests environmentalist's alleged murderer
- Padres pitcher Musgrove needs elbow surgery
- Supreme Court lets stand rules to curb mercury, methane emissions
- Boston beat Denver in NBA exhibition season opener, but Jokic says omens are good
- Chagos diaspora angry at lack of input on islands' fate
- Biden says 'not confident' of peaceful US election
- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- Lukaku stars as Napoli beat Como to hold Serie A top spot
- Ohtani set for MLB playoff debut as Dodgers face Padres
- Pogba's drug ban cut to 18 months from four years
- Devine leads New Zealand to big win over India in Women's T20 World Cup
- Bosnia floods kill 16 people
- EU court blocks French ban on vegetable 'steak' labelling
- Prosecutors seek dismissal of rape charges against French rugby players
- Meta AI turns pictures into videos with sound
- Bolivia's Morales says claims he raped a minor are a 'lie'
- MLB Reds hire two-time champion Francona as manager
- Daniel Maldini receives first Italy call-up for Nations League
- US dockworkers return to ports after three-day strike
- Ancelotti points finger at Madrid's 'lack of intensity'
- Haiti reeling after 70 killed in gang attack
- Five Czech kids in hospital over TikTok 'piercing challenge'
- What happens next in Iran-Israel conflict?
- Country star Garth Brooks denies rape accusations
- Stubbs hits maiden century as South Africa make 343-4 against Ireland
- DR Congo to begin mpox vaccination campaign Saturday in east
- Odegaard injury has forced Arsenal to be 'different', says Arteta
- Ratcliffe refuses to guarantee Ten Hag's Man Utd future
- Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court
- Mauritius to hold legislative election on November 10
- Britain qualify for America's Cup final after 60-year wait
- IMF asks Sri Lanka to protect hard-won gains
- Morata returns to Spain Nations League squad after injury
- Irish regulator to probe Ryanair use of facial recognition
- Public allowed to see video evidence in France mass rape trial
- US hiring soars past expectations in sign of resilient market
- Under-fire Ten Hag 'together' with Man Utd hierarchy
- Guardiola talks of Man City love affair as financial hearing rumbles on
- De Bruyne out of Belgium Nations League squad
- Japanese trainer Yahagi hopes Shin Emperor achieves 50-year-old Arc dream
- UK's Starmer hails 'landmark' carbon capture funding
- As EU targets Chinese cars, European rivals sputter
- Bosnia floods kill 14 people
- Tennis world number one Swiatek splits with coach Wiktorowski
- Liverpool share responsibility for Nunez goal drought, says Slot
- Top EU court finds against FIFA in key transfer market ruling
Oil prices, US jobs data weigh on stocks
A surge in oil prices to close to $93 per barrel as well as robust US jobs data weighed on stock prices Friday as they fuelled expectations central banks will move forcefully to raise interest rates.
Oil prices struck seven-year highs as traders bet on continued improvement in demand thanks to the economic reopening, and with the United States hit by a cold snap.
Lingering worries over Ukraine-Russia tensions were also playing a key role in the spike, with analysts predicting $100 could be breached soon.
But high oil prices would push inflation even higher, with central banks already under pressure to raise interest rates.
US data released Friday showed the US economy added 467,000 jobs in January, far more than had been expected given the renewed onslaught of Covid-19 infections caused by the Omicron variant.
"The key takeaway from the report is that it will inflame concerns about the Fed being behind the curve in fighting inflation," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick J. O'Hare.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to begin raising interest rates next month, but more analysts are expecting it may do so more agressively, by moving with half percentage point hikes rather than quarter point increases.
On Wall Street, both the Dow and S&P 500 were roughly flat in early trading. But the tech-heavy Nasdaq was higher thanks to better-than-expected earnings reports from Amazon, Snap and Pinterest.
Shares in Amazon jumped more than 10 percent as the company reported revenues jumped 9 percent to $137.4 billion in the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, stocks were lower in Europe, where the European Central Bank's apparent shift in its outlook towards lifting rates this year itself stunned investors Thursday.
ECB chief Christine Lagarde had for months said inflationary pressures would be temporary and dissipate as the world economy reopens and supply chains resume -- allowing the bank to keep rates ultra-low this year.
But a record jump in eurozone prices last month and no sign of them easing has forced her to re-evaluate, saying the "situation had indeed changed".
The news boosted the euro -- the single currency recording a weekly gain of nearly three percent against the dollar.
But an ECB board member, French central bank chief Francois Villeroy de Galhau, warned against making predictions.
"If the direction of our trajectory is clear, no one should jump to conclusions about its time," he said.
- Key figures around 1430 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 7,220.96 points
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 1.6 percent at 15,116.21
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.7 percent at 6,954.47
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 1.2 percent at 4,091.03
New York - Dow: UP less than 0.1 percent at 35,125.39
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.7 percent at 27,439.99 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 3.2 percent at 24,573.29 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: Closed for a holiday
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1426 from $1.1438 late Thursday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3524 from $1.3601
Euro/pound: UP at 84.43 pence from 84.06 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 115.34 yen from 114.95 yen
Brent North Sea crude: UP 2.6 percent at $93.46 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 2.9 percent at $92.86 per barrel
L.E.Campos--PC