The growing use of export restrictions by governments can be "dangerously counterproductive" as the world deals with the coronavirus pandemic, the IMF and WTO warned Friday.

European stocks slid at the open Friday, with EU leaders divided over the size of a financial rescue package to stimulate the bloc's economy left battered by the coronavirus pandemic.

US oil prices were set to end a historically bad week on a positive note, extending gains Friday owing to rising Iran-US tensions, though equities edged down following a series of crushing economic data.

Wall Street stocks opened higher Thursday despite another dreadful round of economic data in the wake of coronavirus shutdowns, including the latest spike in US unemployment claims.

European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde warned EU leaders on Thursday against doing "too little, too late" in addressing the economic fallout caused by the coronavirus outbreak, a source told AFP.

EU leaders are set to haggle on Thursday over a giant package to help their economies recover from the coronavirus pandemic,  but bitter divisions mean little progress is expected.

Oil prices rallied Thursday on fresh tensions between the U.S. and Iran, but equities struggled to build on strong gains as data revealed a dire economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday said Germany was ready to pay into a "significantly higher" EU budget to help the bloc cope with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Turkish central bank on Wednesday cut its main interest rate again by a full percentage point to 8.75 percent despite a fall in the Turkish lira's value against the U.S. dollar.

Brent hit a two-decade low Wednesday as oil resumed its painful retreat and extended a rout that has torn through energy markets, though stock exchanges in Asia and Europe were mixed following a two-day sell-off.