- PoliticsReuters Videos
'I have invited Biden to debate': Trump
STORY: "You tell me where," he said. "We're ready."Trump made the comments after his criminal trial had concluded for the day.Earlier on Friday, former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker testified that he suppressed a story about an alleged affair to help Trump's 2016 presidential bid, even though it would have boosted sales of his tabloid.Pecker is the first witness in the case, which accuses Trump, 77, of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.Trump is the first former president to face criminal charges. The trial, which is expected to run through May, could be the only one of his four criminal prosecutions to be completed before his Nov. 5 election rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden.
- PoliticsAssociated Press Videos
AP Explains: Former National Enquirer publisher finishes testimony at Trump trial
Defense lawyers in Donald Trump’s hush money trial dug Friday into assertions of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election.
- BusinessReuters Videos
Business Lookahead: Fed straight ahead
STORY: From a U.S. Federal Reserve meeting to Apple and Amazon reporting results... these are the stories to watch in business and finance in the coming week.The Federal Reserve meets on Tuesday and Wednesday. Rate action is unlikely, but comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell about the potential for policy easing later in 2024 will be scrutinized.Fed futures markets now predict some 35 basis points of easing in 2024 down from 150 expected at the start of the year.The last of the "Magnificent Seven" megacaps to report are Amazon on Tuesday and Apple on Thursday.Some of their peers such as Tesla and Facebook parent Meta Platforms have given a mixed performance.Apple shares have lost their luster in 2024, tumbling over 10%. Amazon's shares are faring better so far this year, having risen 18% as of Wednesday.Official figures for China's PMI index are due on Tuesday and the Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing PMI survey is expected shortly afterwards.Upbeat data could revive spirits and bring relief to policymakers who have been trying to shore up growth.Global investment houses have turned increasingly bullish on Chinese stocks, helping the blue-chip CSI 300 index tack on more than 10% from a February trough.But Beijing is still in a bind over its currency - with the yuan sliding against a perky dollar.Euro zone inflation and economic growth data due out on Tuesday could strengthen market bets for the ECB to lower its deposit rate from a record 4% in June...although policymakers are not expected to move very fast after that.Economists polled by Reuters expect euro zone GDP to have expanded by just 0.1% in the first quarter year-on-year.
