Global news you need to know before the U.S. stock market opens on Friday

In January, the social financing scale increased by 7.06 trillion yuan, the highest level for the same period in history; new RMB loans amounted to 5.13 trillion, and the M2-M1 spread continued to narrow. Affected by severe weather and fires, U.S. retail sales fell by 0.9% month-on-month in January, a decline that far exceeded expectations. The Eurozone economy unexpectedly grew by 0.1% at the end of 2024, but both Germany and France fell into contraction. Russia: There is little interest in rejoining the G7, with a greater focus on the G20. "Green light" for AI investments! The EU has finally relaxed regulations on the tech industry. According to The New York Times, revenue from Musk's social platform X grew by 40% last year. Unfazed by the luxury goods winter! Hermès' fourth-quarter sales exceeded expectations with an 18% increase. U.S. pre-market: Popular Chinese concept stocks rose broadly, with Alibaba up 6%, WeRide once rising over 120%, while SoundHound AI and Serve Robotics fell sharply; European luxury stocks collectively rose, with Hermès up nearly 4%, gold and silver strengthened, and oil prices climbed. The Nikkei 225 index closed down 0.8%, the Shanghai Composite Index closed up 0.43%, and the Hang Seng Index closed up 3.69%