Reuters

By Howard Schneider

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. central bank likely remains on track to cut interest rates this year even if the timing and extent of the policy easing is uncertain and further declines in inflation come only slowly, Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic said in an interview with Reuters.

"I still have that belief" that interest rates can be lowered this year despite a first quarter in which the pace of... (continue reading...)

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose on Friday with focus on speeches from Federal Reserve officials, after economic data this week supported bets of U.S. interest rate cuts and lifted investor sentiment.

Wall Street indexes were back in sight of record highs following a selloff last month, as a slew of economic data pointed to cooling labor market momentum, raising expectations that the Fed will cut borrowing costs more than once this year.

(Reuters) - Shares of China's Zeekr Intelligent Technology were scheduled to start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday after the electric-vehicle maker priced its initial public offering at the top end of its marketed range.

The debut would mark the first major U.S. listing by a Chinese company since 2021 and would test the investor appetite for such companies.

It would also be a barometer to gauge interest for EV makers,... (continue reading...)

(Reuters) - Russian forces tried to break through the border into Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region with armoured vehicles on Friday and heavily shelled the area, Kyiv said, the strongest sign yet that Moscow seeks to awaken a new front in the war.

Ukraine repelled the armoured attack, but fighting in the border areas of Kharkiv region raged and Kyiv has sent more forces to the area as reinforcements, the defence ministry said in a statement.

By Bharath Rajeswaran

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Citigroup analysts upgraded India to "overweight" from "neutral" in their emerging markets allocation on Friday, citing strong earnings and economic growth momentum.

The brokerage expects India's blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index to rise 7% between now and the end of the current financial year ending March 2025, setting a target of 23,900.

The Nifty 50 closed at 22,055.20 on Friday. The... (continue reading...)