SINGAPORE (AP) — World markets were mostly higher Friday after China-U.S. trade talks ended in Washington with expectations for a second meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. But gains were capped by weak manufacturing data for China. Futures point to opening gains on Wall Street. Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell below $53.50 per barrel. The dollar gained against the yen and fell against the euro.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Survey suggests another positive jobs report when the Labor Department releases data today. The Labor Department's monthly employment report will likely show that U.S. employers added a good amount of jobs in January, despite a partial shutdown of the government and concerns about global growth. According to data provider FactSet, analysts expect 165,000 jobs to be added and the unemployment rate to remain at a low 3.9 percent.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Tech companies and nearly half a dozen U.S. states are clashing with the Trump administration in federal court over the repeal of net neutrality, a set of rules aimed at preventing big internet providers from discriminating against certain technology and services. The faceoff comes in a federal appeals court hearing Friday. The companies, including Mozilla and Vimeo, want the judges to restore the net neutrality regime. It was set in 2015 during the Obama administration and repealed in December 2017 under a regulator appointed by President Donald Trump.
NEW YORK (AP) — Facebook says it has removed 783 Iran-linked pages, accounts and groups from its service for what it calls "coordinated inauthentic behavior." That's the social network's term for fake accounts run with the intent of disrupting politics and elections. Facebook has been disclosing such purges more regularly in recent months, including ones linked to groups in Myanmar , Bangladesh and Russia .
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union and Japan have inaugurated a landmark deal they say will boost trade between the two economic powers and sends the message that international agreements still have a purpose in an age of increasing protectionism. The agreement that comes into effect Friday will scrap nearly all tariffs on products both sides trade in. It will have a big impact on Japanese exports of cars to Europe and EU exports of agricultural products like cheese to Japan. The EU and Japan account for almost a third of the world's economy.
