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Prince Harry and family arrive back in Britain: UK media
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Improving standards transform pole vault as spectacle, says Duplantis
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German plan for sugar tax on Coke Zero fizzles out
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India close in on win despite Sri Lanka fightback in second Test
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Deadly flood hits Nepal-Tibet border, hundreds unaccounted for
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MEXC TradFi Gala Concludes With Over 170,000 Registrations and $4.3 Billion in Daily Trading Volume
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Tongue says Root has left England in no doubt over conduct standards
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Olympic skating champion Liu to skip new season
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Flags lowered across US for country music legend Dolly Parton
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Benfica sign midfielder Palhinha from Bayern
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Stocks gain as oil drops on Mideast hopes
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Flick says Barca may go without striker as Atletico resist Alvarez sale
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Bouaddi joins Man City for Premier League teenage record £85.6 mn
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Too hot to incubate: Nile crocodiles hatch on their own in French reserve
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Reclusive Hungarian author Peter Nadas dies aged 83
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Spurs closing in on Man City's Marmoush after signing Savio
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Man City sign Lille's Bouaddi for 100 mn euros
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Celtic count the cost of Champions League flop
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Sooriyabandara, Mendis lead Sri Lanka fightback after follow-on
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Lebanon accuses Israel of burning forest, farmland in south
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With ropes and chants, thousands move Japanese castle
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Nepal floods at China border kill 8, cause 'major casualties' in Tibet
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Zurich Diamond League: five events to watch
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France eases cow diets as cheesemakers sweat
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'Black smoke' chokes Pakistan maternity ward as hospital fire kills 14 infants
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America unites in mourning for Dolly Parton
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French flight attendant wins landmark breast cancer ruling
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Meta and US states discuss settlement in landmark social media trial: report
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Sri Lanka 83-2 after India enforce follow-on in second Test
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Fire haze threatens health of millions in Indonesia, ministry warns
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Pakistan hospital fire kills 14 infants
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Senegal-made sickle cell treatment raises hopes, reduces costs
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Iceland to vote on resuming EU talks in close referendum
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Iran says Hormuz strait still closed despite transit corridor talks
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North Korea to 'bring joy' to Kim with 100 athletes at Asian Games
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'Our patron saint': Tennesseans mourn local hero Dolly Parton
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US LGBTQ community mourns 'diva' Dolly Parton
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Australian police hunt thieves in $250,000 oyster heist
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England bid to banish booze woes as Pakistan seek self-respect
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Coordinated attacks: Thailand's southern insurgency flares
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High quality, low risk: record number of Japanese in Premier League
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Asian Games chiefs hold talks as participant numbers balloon
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Stocks edge higher as oil drops on fresh Mideast hopes
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Too small for fries: drought shrinks Belgian potatoes
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Pakistan's girls fight for their place in the boxing ring
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Drought-hit Danube gives way to fossil hunt in Bulgaria
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Five things to know about Anthropic ahead of Wall Street debut
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Julia Curlee, CIA officer fired by White House for being transgender
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Social media use on the rise among Australian under-16s after ban: data
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Fave or flop? A guide to gauging video game success
World stocks consolidate Fed-fuelled gains
Global stocks on Friday held on to gains seen after the Federal Reserve bank delivered a much-anticipated rate easing this week, but investors shied away from big bets on the future direction of US interest rates.
European and Asian equity markets tracked Thursday's record performance on Wall Street, where the equities seemed poised to end the week on a high note.
"Global stock markets are still pushing higher," observed Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, noting that European stocks had pulled ahead of US markets since the start of the month.
Focus for global investors switches to next week's release of US jobs data, which could provide insights into the Federal Reserve's plans for next year.
Partial data released Thursday showed US jobless claims rose more than expected in the week ended December 6, marking their biggest increase for five and a half years and reinforcing the view of a softening labour market.
Traders welcomed Fed boss Jerome Powell's post-meeting comments Wednesday -- seen as less hawkish than feared -- but the policy board's statement suggested it could hold off from a fourth straight cut in January.
While there was some concern about sector valuations after disappointing earnings from sector giants Oracle and Broadcom caused a tech dip Thursday, this did not translate into sustained selling pressure.
London stock prices underperformed their European peers after official data showed that the UK economy unexpectedly contracted in October.
- Key figures at around 1435 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.3 percent at 48,831.12
New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 0.4 percent at 23,508.69
New York: S&P 500: DOWN 0.1 percent at 6,893.29
London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 9,700.60 points
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 8,138.75
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 24,379.84
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.4 percent at 50,836.55 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.8 percent at 25,976.79 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,889.35 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1731 from $1.1741 on Thursday
Dollar/yen: UP at 156.01 yen from 155.58
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3372 from $1.3394
Euro/pound: UP at 87.75 pence from 87.65 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $61.12 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.2 percent at $57.49 per barrel
burs-jh/sbk
O.Ortiz--AT