AP Photo/Heribert Proepper
European industrial production is coming
European industrial production is coming. At 10 a.m. London time (5 a.m. New York), the eurozone's industrial production data for April is coming. Analysts are expecting a 0.3% boost from March, which would leave production up 1.1% year-on-year.
The bond sell-off could stall the Fed's rate hike. The sharp bond market sell-off is starting to pinch American consumers and companies, causing a mild economic tightening that, if sustained, could raise alarms at the Federal Reserve and even delay a plan to hike interest rates in coming months.
Congress will vote on President Barack Obama's trade authority. President Barack Obama's goal of strengthening US economic ties with Asia will hang in the balance in Congress on Friday when divided lawmakers vote on legislation central to his hallmark Pacific Rim trade deal.
Japanese industrial production was revised up. Production was revised to +0.1% growth year-on-year in April, the first positive figure in 2015 so far.
Taiwan's Asustek hasn't ruled out buying HTC. Taiwan's Asustek said on Friday it has not ruled out the possibility of acquiring struggling smartphone maker HTC. Chairman Johnny Shih of Asustek, one of the world's biggest makers of laptop personal computers and smartphones, made the comment at its annual general meeting, Chief Financial Officer David Chang told Reuters.
Blackberry may begin running Android. BlackBerry is considering equipping an upcoming smartphone with Google Inc.'s Android software for the first time, an acknowledgement that its revamped line of devices has failed to win mass appeal, according to four sources familiar with the matter.
Uber's growth in China has been explosive. Four out of the top 10 cities for Uber are now in China, according to an email sent by Uber CEO Travis Kalanick to investors and obtained by the Financial Times. Guangzhou, Hangzhou, and Chengdu are now the three largest cities on a trips basis, overtaking New York, the email stated.
Twitter CEO Dick Costolo is out. Embattled CEO Dick Costolo will step down on July 1. Jack Dorsey, one of the original founders of the company, will be the interim CEO. The stock surged up about 8% after hours on the news.
Asian markets are up or flat. Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up 0.51% and China's Shanghai Composite Index is up 0.64%. Japan's Nikkei is pretty much entirely flat, down 0.01%.
The CIO of a major asset management firm says the bond bubble is a myth. "I've been looking for Sasquatch in the bond bubble, or the credit bubble," said Scott Minerd, chief investment officer (CIO) at Guggenheim Partners, according to Bloomberg.