Global FX DATA:

• • • ASIAN MARKET
      
      Asian equities continued to rise in afternoon trade on Friday after U.S. president Donald Trump backtracked on his suggestion of an imminent missile attack on Syria, but Mainland Chinese markets underperformed its regional peers as data on Friday showed the country’s exports in March unexpectedly fell.
       
    • GOLD
      
      Gold prices eased off multi-week highs as minutes from the Federal Reserves’s last policy meeting raised expectations for a faster pace of U.S. rate hikes.
       
  • • OIL
      
      Oil prices edged lower on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump tempered remarks warning of an imminent missile attack on Syria, but were still set for their biggest weekly gains in more than 8 months.
       
    • INDIA
      
      India’s retail inflation eased to a five-month low in March, but remained above the Reserve Bank of India’s medium-term target, supporting views that monetary policy is likely to remain unchanged at the next review in early June.
       
    • DOLLAR
      
      The dollar neared a 1-1/2-month high against the yen on Friday, as an improvement in investor risk appetite buoyed equities and pushed U.S. yields significantly higher.
       
    • CRYPTO CURRENCY
      
      Bitcoin prices rose, along with other major cryptocurrencies, despite reports that Australia put crypto providers under direct purview under the country’s money-laundering watchdog.
       
    • AUSTRALIA
      
      Australia’s central bank said on Friday the build-up of risks from high-household debt and aggressive bank lending practices has somewhat abated of late but cautioned dangers still remain.

    • SOUTH KOREA
      
       General Motors Co’s president said common ground must be reached on a long-term financial restructuring of GM’s South Korean auto unit by April 20 and if there was none, the operation would likely seek bankruptcy protection.

    • US
      
      U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered the creation of a task force to study the U.S. Postal Service and its financial difficulties, after recently claiming without evidence that deliveries for Amazon.com Inc were costing the service money.

    • CHINA
      
       Anbang Insurance Group Co, once among China’s most aggressive overseas dealmakers that has been seized by the government, is in talks with investment banks to advise it on selling some businesses

    • MANILLA
      
      Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to arrest an International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor if she conducts activities in his country, arguing it was no longer an ICC member so the court had no right to do any investigating.

    • MOGADISHU
      
      A bomb killed at least five spectators at a football match in southern Somalia, police and a lawmaker said on Friday, the first time an explosion has targeted a stadium.
       

    • JAPAN
      
      Japan’s longest run of economic growth since the 1980s asset bubble was expected to stall in the first quarter but is seen likely to regain some momentum over the course of the year.