Sectors
U.S. retailers miss fewer Christmas deadlines: early surveys
Major U.S. retailers missed fewer Christmas deliveries this year, according to two small, early surveys released on Friday, partly reflecting a year's worth of investments made to avoid 2013's last-minute shipping debacle.
Oil declines amid stronger dollar, crude oversupply in U.S.
Oil prices fell Friday, tumbling as the dollar strengthened and as a supply glut in top consumer, the United States, trumped worries about falling production from Libya.
China raises Nepal aid five-fold in regional diplomacy push
China will increase official aid to Nepal by more than five times from fiscal 2015-16, officials said on Friday, to develop infrastructure in the landlocked nation where regional rival India has long wielded political influence.
Budget pressure unlikely to deflect Iran from nuclear goals
A big oil price slide will hurt Iran's attempts to rescue battered living standards, but economic pain is unlikely to soften its stance in nuclear talks or end aid to allies such as Syria, matters seen by its ruling clerics as strategic priorities.