Stock indices closed mixed as Greece pledged to submit its proposed economic reforms later in the day.

The Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann said in Frankfurt on Friday that debt in the Eurozone has reached the "danger zone" as public debt totalled 91% and corporate debt - 105%.

The Bank of England (BoE) Governor Mark Carney said in Frankfurt on Friday that the central bank's next move will be interest rate hike.

The U.K. house price index increased 0.1% in March, missing expectations for 0.2% gain, after a 0.1% decline in February.

On a yearly basis, the U.K. house price inflation fell to 5.1% in March from 5.7% in February.

Indexes on the close:

Name Price Change Change %

FTSE 100 6,855.02 -40.31 -0.58 %

DAX 11,868.33 +24.65 +0.21 %

CAC 40 5,034.06 +27.71 +0.55 %

The Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann said in Frankfurt on Friday that debt in the Eurozone has reached the "danger zone" as public debt totalled 91% and corporate debt - 105%.

Weidmann noted that a European solution may be required for the regulatory treatment of sovereign debt.

"Sovereign debt needs to be backed by capital, and exposure to a single sovereign must be capped, just as is the case for any private debtor", the Bundesbank president said.

The Fed Vice Chairmann Stanley Fischer said in Frankfurt on Friday that the nonbank financial system is less vulnerable to shocks today.

"Regulators need to respond to existing regulatory gaps and to keep pace with further changes," Fischer noted.

The Fed vice chairman also said that regulators have not enough information about the activities of hedge funds.

The Bank of England (BoE) Deputy Governor, Ben Broadbent, said in London on Friday that it is unlikely that the U.K. economy will suffer from a low inflation. "The likelihood of a broad and protracted deflation, afflicting wages as well as prices, is pretty low," Broadbent said.

He noted that inflation declined due to falling oil prices. Negative price growth is temporary and positive for the economy, he added.

Broadbent expects the consumer inflation to increase in early 2016.

The BoE deputy governor also said that wages will grow as unemployment declined.

U.S. stock index futures dipped on Friday as the dollar index added to the previous session's rebound ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.

Global markets:

Nikkei 19,285.63 -185.49 -0.95%

Hang Seng 24,486.2 -10.88 -0.04%

Shanghai Composite 3,691.95 +9.86 +0.27%

FTSE 6,864.09 -31.24 -0.45%

CAC 5,016.8 +10.45 +0.21%

DAX 11,862.31 +18.63 +0.16%

Crude oil $51.01 (-1.02%)

Gold $1200.50 (-0.35%)

(company / ticker / price / change, % / volume)

Upgrades:

Downgrades:

Other:

Tesla Motors (TSLA) initiated at Hold at Argus

Yahoo! (YHOO) initiated at Overweight at Morgan Stanley, target $55

Amazon.com (AMZN) target raised to $430 from $405 at Citigroup

Facebook (FB) target raised to $98 from $88 at Barclays

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) Governing Board Member Fritz Zurbruegg said on Thursday that the central bank is ready to intervene in the foreign exchange market if needed.

The SNB reported in its annual report that it spent CHF25.8 billion ($26.9 billion) on defending the cap in late 2014.

Zurbruegg noted that the Swiss franc remains overvalued. He said that he does not expect a sustained negative inflation or a deflationary spiral.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said on Thursday that low interest rate in the Eurozone is causing "huge problems" for Germany. He noted that the current monetary policy by the European Central Bank (ECB) could lead to "misallocations of resources".

Schaeble pointed out that he did not want to criticise the ECB because it was a structural problem.

U.S. stocks booked losses on Thursday - declining for the fourth day but well above session lows as better-than-expected U.S. economic data on Initial Jobless Claims and service PMI supported the markets. Concerns over the situation in Yemen weighed on markets. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states launched airstrikes against Iranian-backed Houthi rebel positions in Yemen. The S&P 500 closed -0.61% with a final quote of 2,091.50 points. The DOW JONES index lost -0.58%, closing at 18,011.14 points.

Today a set of important U.S. data including the GDP and the Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index will be in the focus. FED Chair Janet Yellen and FED Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer are scheduled to speak today at Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Conference.

Chinese stocks were trading mixed again. Hong Kong's Hang Seng is trading lower slightly down -0.12% at 24,467.24 points. China's Shanghai Composite rose to 3,691.95 points closing +0.27%.

The Nikkei shed early gains and closed lower mainly on profit-taking before the end of the 1^st quarter and after the recent rally. Exporter shares declined on a stronger Japanese yen. The index closed -0.95% with a final quote of 19,285.63 points - a one week-low. Yesterday a set of mixed data was reported.

Household spending declined -2.9%, less than the expected reading of -3.1%. The Japanese Unemployment Rate for February declined from a previous reading of 3.6% to 3.2%, below the estimated 3.5%. The Tokyo Consumer Price Index for March remained unchanged at +2.3%. Excluding fresh food the reading was unchanged at +2.2%. The National Consumer Price Index grew less at a pace of +2.2% compared to +2.4% a year earlier. Ex-fresh food the National CPI rose +2.0%, below expectations of an increase of +2.1%. Retail Sales in Japan declined by -1.8% in February, less than the -2.0% a year ago but above estimates on a decrease by -1.4%.

(index / closing price / change items /% change)

Nikkei 225 19,471.12 -275.08 -1.39 %

Hang Seng 24,497.08 -31.15 -0.13 %

Shanghai Composite 3,682.42 +21.69 +0.59 %

FTSE 100 6,895.33 -95.64 -1.37 %

CAC 40 5,006.35 -14.64 -0.29 %

Xetra DAX 11,843.68 -21.64 -0.18 %

S&P 500 2,056.15 -4.90 -0.24 %

NASDAQ Composite 4,863.36 -13.16 -0.27 %

Dow Jones 17,678.23 -40.31 -0.23 %