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Oil Prices Fall Before U.S. Data

Oil prices fell Friday with analysts predicting further pressure on the market owing to a glut of global supplies and weak demand.

Markets were awaiting a U.S. jobs report due Friday, with forecasts for another sharp rise in new positions giving the Federal Reserve more ammunition to lift interest rates.

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German Carmakers Clock up Record Sales in 2014

German automakers BMW, Daimler and Volkwagen said Friday their leading brands attained record sales in 2014, driven by rising demand in all regions.

Top-of-the-range maker BMW said in a statement it delivered more than two million vehicles to customers last year, "the company's fourth record year in a row."

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Euro Edges Up from Nine-Year Low against Dollar

The euro recovered some losses against the dollar in Asia Friday after slipping below $1.800 for the first time in more than nine years, while traders await the release of U.S. jobs figures later in the day.

In Tokyo, the single currency rose to $1.1808 from $1.1754 in New York. The last time it was below $1.800 was December 2005. It weakened to 140.89 yen Friday from 141.15 yen in U.S. trade.

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Swiss Central Bank Eyes Record Profit for 2014

Switzerland's central bank on Friday said it expected record profits of 38 billion Swiss francs (31.6 billion euros) in 2014 on the back of gains from its foreign currency holding.

The bank said it would make a profit of 34 billion Swiss francs ($33 billion) from its foreign currency holdings and four billion Swiss francs from its gold holdings, according to provisional estimates.

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Oil Prices Up in Asia

Oil prices rose in Asia on Friday after recent heavy falls, but analysts said any gains are likely to be limited by plentiful global supplies.

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate for February delivery was up 43 cents at $49.22 a barrel in afternoon trade and Brent crude for February gained 34 cents to $51.30.

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Turkey to Order Four More F-35 from U.S. Lockheed Martin

Turkey is planning to buy four more F-35 Joint Strike Fighters from the US, in addition to the two it had already ordered, the country's defense industry agency said.

"It has been agreed that four more F-35 planes will be procured in addition to the two previously ordered as part of a plan to buy a total of 100 new generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighters," the defense industry executive committee (SSM) said in a statement posted on its website.

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Standard Chartered to Axe Further 2,000 Jobs

Standard Chartered said Thursday it would close a swathe of its global equities business and axe 2,000 jobs around the world this year as it tries to make savings of $400 million as part of a structural overhaul.

The Asia-focused British bank said it had already announced or completed 2,000 job cuts in its retail clients business in the past three months, but 2,000 more were "expected during 2015" in the same segment.

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Chip Sales Cushion Samsung Q4 Profit Decline

Samsung Electronics, the world's largest smartphone maker, flagged a lighter than expected profit decline in the fourth quarter Thursday, with memory chip sales cushioning a continued slump in mobile revenue.

Operating profit for the October-December period was estimated at 5.2 trillion won ($4.7 billion), down 37.4 percent from the fourth quarter of 2013, the company said.

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Euro Weakens in Asia on ECB Stimulus Expectations

The euro slid in Asia Thursday as falling prices in the eurozone boosted the prospect of European Central Bank (ECB) stimulus, while the Fed appears on track to hike interest rates by mid-year.

The single currency slipped to $1.1820 and 141.51 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, from $1.1842 and 141.70 yen in New York. The euro dropped to 1.1802 at one point on Wednesday, its lowest since January 2006.

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German Industrial Orders Slump in November

German industrial orders, a key measure of demand for German-made goods both at home and abroad, fell sharply in November, weighed down by falling domestic orders, data showed on Thursday.

Industrial orders dropped by 2.4 percent in November compared with the previous month, the economy ministry said in a statement.

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