- Hezbollah strikes Israel, says it foiled Israeli incursions
- Jurgen Klopp to return as head of Red Bull football operations
- Sinner to face Medvedev in Shanghai Masters quarter-finals
- US weighs Google breakup in landmark trial
- Record-breaking Root guides England to 232-2 in reply to Pakistan's 556
- Japan PM dissolves parliament for 'honeymoon' snap election
- Chinese stocks tumble on stimulus upset, Asia tracks Wall St higher
- 7-Eleven owner confirms new takeover offer from Couche-Tard
- Goodbye Tito? Tomb at risk as Serbs argue over Yugoslav legacy
- Restoration experts piece together silent Sherlock Holmes mystery
- Sinner avoids Shanghai deja vu with assured Shelton win
- Pyongyang to 'permanently' shut border with South Korea
- Trumpet star Marsalis says jazz creates 'balance' in divided world
- No children left on Greece's famed but emptying island
- Nepali becomes youngest to climb world's 8,000m peaks
- Climate change made deadly Hurricane Helene more intense: study
- A US climate scientist sees hurricane Helene's devastation firsthand
- Padres edge Dodgers, Mets on the brink
- Can carbon credits help close coal plants?
- With EU funding, Tunisian farmer revives parched village
- Sega ninja game 'Shinobi' gets movie treatment
- Boeing suspends negotiations with striking workers
- 7-Eleven owner's shares spike on report of new buyout offer
- Your 'local everything': what 7-Eleven buyout battle means for Japan
- Three million UK children living below poverty line: study
- China's Jia brings film spanning love, change over decades to Busan
- Paying out disaster relief before climate catastrophe strikes
- Chinese shares drop on stimulus upset, Asia tracks Wall St higher
- SE Asian summit seeks progress on Myanmar civil war
- How climate funds helped Peru's women beekeepers stay afloat
- Nobel Peace Prize to be awarded as wars rage
- Pacific island nations swamped by global drug trade
- AI-aided research, new materials eyed for Nobel Chemistry Prize
- Mozambique elects new president in tense vote
- The US economy is solid: Why are voters gloomy?
- Balkan summit to rally support for struggling Ukraine
- New stadium gives Real Madrid a headache
- Alonso, Manaea shine as 'Miracle Mets' blitz Phillies
- Harris, Trump trade blows in US election media blitz
- Harry's Bar in Paris drinks to US straw-poll centenary
- Osama bin Laden's son Omar banned from returning to France
- Afghan man arrested for plotting US election day attack
- Brazil lifts ban on Musk's X, ending standoff over disinformation
- Harris holds slight edge nationally over Trump: poll
- Chelsea edge Real Madrid in Women's Champions League, Lyon win
- Japan PM to dissolve parliament for 'honeymoon' snap election
- 'Diego Lives': Immersive Maradona exhibit hits Barcelona
- Brazil Supreme Court lifts ban on Musk's X
- Scientists sound AI alarm after winning physics Nobel
- Six-year-old girl among missing after Brazil landslide
Stocks stable, oil climbs at end of volatile week
Oil prices rose and stock markets were stable to slightly higher on Friday at the end of a week of high volatility related to the war in Ukraine, traders said.
After trading in negative territory most of the day, European stock markets turned higher at the close, shrugging off concerns about aggressive monetary tightening by different central banks around the world, sky-high inflation and soaring commodity prices.
On the other side of the Atlantic, Wall Street was also stable.
OANDA analyst Craig Erlam suggested that "an unhealthy amount of complacency (could be) creeping into the markets".
"The rebound we've seen over the last couple of weeks has been nothing short of extraordinary," Erlam said.
"I understand that markets probably fell too far against the backdrop of immense uncertainty... but when it comes to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and negotiations, I can't help but think we should take apparent progress with a pinch of salt. Instead, investors appear to be taking everything at face value," the expert said.
The International Monetary Fund, World Bank and other top world lenders, for their part, warned of "extensive" economic fallout from the war in Ukraine and expressed "horror" at the "devastating human catastrophe".
"The entire global economy will feel the effects of the crisis through slower growth, trade disruptions, and steeper inflation," the institutions -- including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development -- wrote in a joint statement.
Warning that the world could face the "biggest oil supply shock in decades", the International Energy Agency called on governments to urgently implement measures to cut global crude consumption within months.
The IEA also urged OPEC+, the group of oil producers led by Russia and Saudi Arabia, to act to "relieve the strain" on the markets at their next meeting.
In addition to the war, central bank actions were in sharp focus this week.
While the Federal Reserve announced the first of what many think will be seven interest-rate hikes this year, traders have largely accounted for a period of tighter monetary policy.
- Oil price pressure -
But for investors, the overriding question were further developments in the war.
US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping held talks, with the White House looking to get Beijing onside in trying to bring an end to the European conflict.
That comes as Russia appeared to play down reports of progress in talks with Ukraine on a ceasefire, while the Pentagon warned Vladimir Putin could threaten to use nuclear weapons if the conflict dragged on.
But while the extreme volatility caused by Russia's invasion has died down for now, commentators remain cautious.
The uncertainty over Ukraine, and reports that some lockdown measures in Chinese tech hub Shenzhen -- which helped fuel a market sell-off earlier this week -- were being eased early, has helped push oil prices back up above $100 per barrel.
Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said the oil price would probably remain elevated.
"Market internals suggest that oil's downside remains sticky even when Ukraine and Russia are inching towards peace," he said.
"So there is a genuine belief that even if the war does end, sanctions on Russia will likely persist, making oil supplies tougher to source for longer."
- Key figures around 1545 GMT -
New York - DOW: FLAT at 34,483.02 points
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 7,404.73 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.2 percent at 14,413.09 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 6,620. (24close)
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 3,902.44
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.4 percent at 21,412.40 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.7 percent at 26,827.43 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.1 percent at 3,251.07 (close)
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.5 percent at $107.15 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $102.60 per barrel
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1060 from $1.1095 late Thursday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3187 from $1.3149
Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.85 pence from 84.35 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 119.15 yen from 118.64 yen
burs-spm/har
D.Kaufman--AMWN