Last checked at 
Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of markets brought to you by Reuters reporters. You can share your thoughts with us at
STUMBLING AWAY (0800 GMT)
Chip giant Intel's grim earnings report along with mixed U.S data that showed a resilient economy but a labour market that remains tight will likely dominate investors' minds and dictate Friday's trading.
The U.S. chip bellwether expects to lose money in the current quarter as two pillars of its success in the past few years -- the PC and data centre businesses -- face slowing demand.
"We stumbled ... we lost momentum," said Chief Executive Pat Gelsinger.
In contrast, European chipmaker STMicroelectronics cited strong demand from automotive and industrial customers on Thursday as it beat earnings and sales targets.
Meanwhile, better-than-estimated U.S. GDP data has provided a fillip to investors for some risk-on rally, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan at a nine-month high and set for its best ever January performance.
The Japanese yen rose against the dollar after Tokyo's consumer inflation, a leading indicator of nationwide trends, touched a near 42-year high and reinforced market expectations that the Bank of Japan will soon have to step away from its ultra-easy policy.
Before next week's central bank meetings (that's Fed, ECB and BOE on the deck) take all of investors' attention, the focus on Friday will be on the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) data. The core PCE price index is expected to rise 0.3% in December, according to Reuters poll of economists.
Key developments that could influence markets on Friday:
Economic events: Sweden unemployment rate for December, Spain Q4 GDP data and core U.S. PCE data
STOXX SEEN HIGHER AFTER U.S. STRONG Q4 (0730 GMT)
Futures are pointing to a positive start of the day for European bourses after data highlighting a resilient U.S. economy boosted investor sentiment ahead of next week's slate of central bank policy meetings and corporate earnings.
In Europe, the focus will also be on a mixed batch of earnings results.
European stock futures Eurostoxx 50 futures, German DAX futures and FTSE futures are up around 0.1%.
The U.S. economy grew faster than expected in the fourth quarter. But capping the enthusiasm, data also showed that a measure of domestic demand rose at its slowest pace in 2-1/2 years, reflecting the impact of higher borrowing costs. While a separate report showed that labour market remains tight and could lead the Fed to keep interest rates higher for longer.
In terms of corporate news, luxury goods group LVMH's sales rose 9% in the fourth quarter as shoppers in Europe and the U.S. splurged over the crucial holiday season, helping partly to offset COVID disruptions in China.
H&M, the world's second-biggest fashion retailer, reported a much larger dive than expected in September-November operating profit, slammed by soaring costs and weakening consumer confidence.
