Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:
1. Stock market overview
1. Stock market overview
The weekend is just around the corner but that's clearly not enough to cheer stock market investors. All the major indexes are in the red.
U.S. stock futures are down, European markets are sliding in early trading and Asian markets all closed the week with losses.
However, the moves aren't dramatic. Most indexes are falling by about 0.5%.
2. Global growth concerns
2. Global growth concerns
Despite extraordinary measures taken by the European Central Bank, growth in the euro zone continued to show weak signs as Friday saw first quarter growth revised down to 0.5%, from an initial reading of 0.6%, reminding market participants of the weak global growth outlook.
Germany, the engine of the euro zone economy, managed to surprise with a better-than-expected increase of 0.7% in the first quarter, but the German economy ministry warned that growth was expected to slow on a decline in exports.
3. Brexit warning
3. Brexit warning
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that a vote by the U.K. to leave the European Union (EU), known as a Brexit, in the June 23 referendum could cause a stock market crash and a steep fall in British house prices.
The IMF added that over the longer-term, a Brexit would lead to depressed growth.
The warning followed a similar message delivered by Bank of England governor Mark Carney on Thursday.
4. Economics
4. Economics
Economists have got their hands full on Friday.
The eurozone economy grew 1.5% in the first quarter compared to the same period in the previous year. That's slightly below the preliminary estimate of 1.6% growth.
The International Monetary Fund just released a report about the U.K. economy, noting that it's suffering a slowdown ahead of June vote on whether the country should leave the European Union. The head of the Bank of England said on Thursday that leaving the EU could push the economy into a recession.
OPEC: a group of some of the biggest oil exporting nations in the world is releasing its monthly oil market report at 7:35 a.m. ET. This comes as oil prices have recovered from record-setting lows over the past few months.
In the U.S., the Census Bureau is reporting national retail sales data for April at 8:30 a.m. And the University of Michigan is releasing its Consumer Sentiment Survey for April at 10 a.m.
