Speculation over a hold on Federal Reserve interest rate hikes and big gains in crude oil prices pushed global markets and U.S. stock futures up Thursday.
Investors rushed to safe havens such as gold and bonds as most world markets extended Tuesday's losses.
Asian stock markets soared in approval of Bank of Japan's move to adopt negative interest rates Friday.
Investors dragged down European and Chinese markets while U.S. tech stock futures suggested a positive start to U.S. indexes Thursday.
Investors got some breathing space Friday after crude oil futures rallied overnight.
China’s stock markets saw the biggest losses among Asian markets, a day after the U.S. S&P 500 index sank to its lowest level since February 2014.
Asian stock markets fell sharply, followed by their European counterparts and U.S. stock futures.
U.S. equities got hammered in Friday's session joining a global sell-off as investors worry about China and oil prices. Jeanne Yurman reports.
After a slight reprieve, markets continued their 2016 slide Wednesday, with the Dow Jones industrial Average falling nearly 400 points.
The Dow dropped nearly 300 points Monday, with history showing that slow trading in January can sometimes set the tone for the rest of the year.
European Central Bank Governor Mario Draghi's comments buffeted investor sentiment in Europe while Asian markets locked in marginal gains during the week.
As jitters from the attacks in Paris dissipated, global markets rose Thursday on encouraging comments from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The new data provides a positive contrast with the most recent Labor Department employment report, which showed a slowdown in hiring.
While European markets appeared on the mend, U.S. stock futures pointed to a strong opening after Tuesday's fall.
A total of 50 brokerage houses are said to be planning to pump 100 billion yuan into the government-backed margin finance agency.
European shares are now on course to recover most of the week's losses on a day that saw Chinese and Asian stocks make significant gains.
Wednesday's rise on the Dow reassured markets while the Bank of Japan downplayed fears about China's economy.
On Tuesday, the New York Stock Exchange again relied on Rule 48, a mechanism for ensuring orderly trading during high market turbulence.
After suffering severe losses on Monday, European indexes jumped over 3 percent during early trade Tuesday.
By midday, the tech company's stock was trading at more than 2 percent above its Friday market close of $105.76.
The Fed's statement is due at 2 p.m. EDT, followed half an hour later by Chair Janet Yellen's news conference.
Economists are looking ahead to next week’s release of the U.S. jobs report for May.