The US economic expansion slowed in the Q1, as consumer spending rose at the weakest pace in the five-year period, though stronger wage growth indicated the setback would be transitory.
On Friday, the Vice President of the US Mike Pence claimed that he welcomes the possible denuclearisation of the North Korea, underlining that the US will keep pressure on the country.
On Friday, Economic Affairs European Commissioner Pierre Moscovici claimed that Bulgaria is the next EU state which will adopt Euro, underlining that a process of adoption needs to be conducted without rush.
On Friday, the President of the US Donald Trump welcomed the historic meeting between the President of South Korea Moon Jae-in and the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
On Friday, the President of Brazil Michel Temer denied allegations regarding the corruption investigation on the regulation-related bribes laundering through real estate operations.
Britain's banks are likely to be covered by the EU law until the 2020 end if the withdrawal agreement agreed by the EU and Britain is ratified, the ECB stated.
Colgate-Palmolive stated that first-quarter sales were weaker than anticipated amid tepid demand in the comapany's biggest market in Latin America.
Brave Ro0botics' CEO Kenju Ishida has unveiled its humanoid robot called "J-deite RIDE" in Japan on Wednesday, which can transform into a sports vehicle in around 60 seconds.
Petroleo Brasileiro and Centrais Eletricas are nearing to close a $5.75B deal to resolve a dispute of Eletrobras debt, according to the Valor Economico newspaper's report on Friday.
On Thursday, Bayer agreed to sell extra assets to BASF, fulfilling the undertakings to the EU as part of the Monsanto takeover.
Ping An's online healthcare service Good Doctor raised $1.12B in the initial public offering, the largest in Hong Kong this year, sources familiar with the issue reported.
Zhejiang Geely Holding's CFO Daniel Li announced on Friday that China's authorities had approved its purchase of an 8.2% stake in Sweden's truckmaker AB Volvo.
On Friday, Japan's video game developer Nintendo announced it had tied-up with the Tokyo-based online games maker Cygames, as it sought to boost the smartphone gaming business.
On Friday, the Foreign Ministers for Russia and Azerbaijan have discussed the possible settlement of the Armenian-Azeri conflict around the Nagorno-Karabakh region in a telephone call.
Japan's Fujifilm Holdings has resumed its talks with Xerox over their $6.1B merger deal, its terms and conditions, a spokeswoman for Fujifilm stated on Thursday.
European shares opened higher early on Friday due to solid fundamentals from Spanish banks and stronger tech stocks, thus extending their gains for the fifth consecutive week.
Oil prices fell on Friday in response to a stronger US Dollar, with the Brent crude and the US West Texas Intermediate crude reaching $74.47 and $67.88, respectively.
On Friday, the Japanese firm Kobe Steel announced it would sell 75% stake in its Shinko Real Estate unit to two Japan's real estate companies for $678M.
Hyundai Motor stated on Friday it would cancel $890M in treasury shares due to shareholder pressure to boost returns, reshuffle and bounce back from depressed earnings.
Square is set to acquire the website building platform Weebly in a deal worth $365M that would help the payments company to provide its small business clients with the wider range of services and expand the customer base globally.
On Friday, Sony stated it expects the operating profit to tumble 8.8% to $6.13B in the current year through March 2019, on the back of a stronger yen that slows its image sensor business.
On Thursday, Tesla's board recommended ahead of the annual meeting that shareholders voted against a proposal for the EV maker's chairman to become an independent director.
Shares of China's Internet poker game companies dropped up to 18% of their value last week on local media's reports over the potential ban the government would impose on poker-related firms from June 1.
The US wireless carriers Sprint and T-Mobile US have achieved some progress in talks over merger terms, seeking to complete the deal negotiations as soon as next week.