Argentina's quest to resolve its debt problems moved a step forward Friday when a U.S. judge tentatively agreed to lift a block on repaying holders of its restructured bonds.

Judge Thomas Griesa, who placed the injunction on the payments two years ago to force Buenos Aires to settle with so-called holdout creditors, said the country's new reformist government had made enough progress for it to be lifted.

Germany doubled its arms exports last year to around eight billion euros ($8.9 billion), government figures showed on Friday, in contradiction to Berlin's pledge to rein in the amount of weapons Europe's biggest economy sells abroad. 

The increase was driven largely by "special factors," Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel explained when presenting the data.

Oil prices fell in Asia Friday after a sharp rise in U.S. crude stockpiles and Saudi Arabia's rejection of proposed output cuts shot down a rally by the battered commodity.

The about-turn came as the U.S. Energy Department reported a 2.1 million barrel increase in U.S. commercial crude inventories, to the highest in more than eight decades, as well as sizeable increases in gasoline and other refined products.

U.S. aircraft maker Boeing said Friday it had won a $440 million deal with Papua New Guinea's flag carrier Air Niugini for four 737 MAX 8 planes.

Announcing the deal along with Boeing at the final trade day of the Singapore Airshow, Air Niugini chairman Sir Frederick Reiher said the carrier needed the planes "urgently".

The growing pain of plunging oil prices has galvanized Saudi Arabia to look beyond its rivalry with Russia and Iran over regional conflicts and pursue cooperation on production, analysts say.

But there are doubts about whether it will last because mutual suspicions remain deep and the Sunni-ruled Gulf kingdoms are loath to cede market share to Shiite Iran as it emerges from years of sanctions.

Saudi Arabia is "not prepared" to cut oil production, its foreign minister said on Thursday, after the top exporter agreed with Russia to freeze output if major rivals follow.

"If other producers want to limit or agree to a freeze in terms of additional production that may have an impact on the market but Saudi Arabia is not prepared to cut production," Adel al-Jubeir told AFP.

Niger, which holds elections on Sunday, is an arid uranium-rich nation south of the Sahara that faces repeated famines.

President Mahamadou Issoufou, who was elected in 2011, is running for a fresh mandate against 14 candidates.

The OECD on Thursday cut its 2016 economic growth forecast to 3.0 percent from 3.3 percent owing to disappointing data, sluggish demand, weak investment and a high risk of financial instability.

"Financial instability risks are substantial," the 34-member Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said in its latest interim outlook, urging a strong collective response to combat sagging global growth, which it predicts will not surpass 2015's already pallid showing.

Shares in Air France-KLM soared Thursday after the group posted its first annual operating profit since 2008 on reduced costs, notably due to lower fuel prices.

The stock price of Europe's largest carrier was up 9.4 percent to 8.15 euros two hours into trading, as the carrier unveiled net 2015 profits of 118 million euros ($131 million).

The Malaysian ringgit led a rally in emerging market currencies Thursday as a surge in oil prices injected traders with confidence while minutes from the Federal Reserve suggested it will not hike interest rates for some time.

Crude, which last week flirted with 13-year lows, extended a surge that began Friday as dealers grow hopeful of an easing to the overproduction and supply glut that has hammered the commodity for a year and a half.