The dollar eased on Friday as worries over a slowdown in the United States mounted, with traders on guard ahead of a slew of central bank meetings next week, where the Federal Reserve takes centre stage.

Unemployment in the eurozone has dropped to a record low, at 6.5 percent in October, the EU's Eurostat statistics office said Thursday.

The French government plans to rein in unemployment benefits when the jobless rate is less than 9% under a plan presented on Monday that aims to tackle staff shortages that companies say are holding back business.

Britain's unemployment rate unexpectedly rose and vacancies fell for a fifth report in a row as employers worried about the outlook for the economy, official data showed on Tuesday, ahead of a tough government budget plan later this week.

The global economy is approaching a recession as economists polled by Reuters once again cut growth forecasts for key economies while central banks keep raising interest rates to bring down persistently-high inflation.

Britain reported a record jump in the number of people leaving the labour market in the three months to August, adding to the Bank of England's inflation headaches.

British recruiters saw the weakest growth in hiring in more than a year and a half last month, as signs of an economic downturn made workers more wary about changing jobs and businesses more cautious about hiring, a survey showed on Friday.

U.S. stock indexes futures pared losses on Thursday, with Nasdaq futures briefly turning positive after data showing an increase in weekly jobless claims suggested the Federal Reserve may need to ease its aggressive monetary tightening cycle.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased by the most in four months last week, but the labor market remains tight even as demand for labor is cooling amid higher interest rates.

Fraudsters likely stole $45.6 billion from the United States' unemployment insurance program during the COVID-19 pandemic by applying tactics like using Social Security numbers of deceased individuals, a federal watchdog said on Thursday.

The Bank of England looks set to hike borrowing costs by another 50 basis points next week, although it may opt for an even bigger move, a Reuters poll found, adding to the woes of indebted households already facing a cost of living crisis.

Britain's jobless rate hit its lowest since 1974 but the drop was due mostly to a fall in the size of the workforce and there were other signs that the country's jobs boom is petering out, adding to the Bank of England's inflation headache.

It was meant to be Europe's stellar year.

China's central bank is set to take more easing steps, pressured by a shaky economy that is undercutting jobs, but it faces limited room to manoeuvre due to worries over rising inflation and capital flight, policy insiders and analysts said.

China's wobbly economy stumbled further at the start of the second half of the year, with factories unexpectedly switching back to the slow lane.

Traders will be poring over policymakers' views on the outlook for the world's biggest economy as they try to rein in inflation while nurturing growth.

Britain is set to have the lowest economic growth of any Group of Seven country, projections show.

U.S. economic growth could fall below 1% this year and remain sluggish through 2023 as the Fed acts "resolutely" to curb inflation, New York Federal Reserve president John Williams said Friday.

Recession worry-warts did not find much to fan their anxiety in Friday's stronger-than-expected U.S.

Britain's jobless rate rose for the first time since late 2020 and other measures of the country's hot labour market cooled, potentially easing inflation worries at the Bank of England which is due to raise rates again this week.

A near doubling in benchmark cotton futures to 11-year highs, hard on the heels of a spike in freight and fuel prices, is clobbering Asian apparel makers while their global retail customers are reluctant to soak up the extra costs.

Markets have sold off sharply this year on growing worries about an economic slowdown due to aggressive Fed policy moves aimed at reining in surging prices.

There are concerns the Fed could raise rates too high and choke off economic growth

Claims are a closely-watched metric of labor market health, and shot into the millions when the pandemic broke out in the United States in March 2020.

While never meant to be permanent, the benefits were reauthorized twice, most recently in the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan enacted by President Joe Biden

US stocks had dropped the last two sessions, with analysts pointing to a weak retail sales report amid the Delta variant

"If she has one ounce of human kindness or humanity left in her heart she should give it to my dad."

The Oxford Economics analysts said the pandemic unemployment benefits may be a factor limiting labor supply.

Biden's efforts received a big endorsement, when IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva offered her support for the plan, and rejected the notion it was excessive.

Dubbed the American Rescue Plan, the proposal released Thursday includes a host of measures aimed at revitalizing the world's largest economy.