Oil prices extended their slide this week, kicking off the new year with 5.5-year low points, as tepid eurozone demand offset a pick-up in the U.S. economy.

The dollar strengthened, hitting demand for commodities like crude and metals priced in the U.S. unit.

Car-sharing startup Uber on Friday bragged it rang in the New Year with two million rides, many of them apparently to revelers heading home in early morning hours.

And while demand for rides spiked from one to two in the morning in most cities where Uber operates, partiers in Paris didn't put pressure on the service until after 4 am local time (0300 GMT).

The euro sank to $1.20 Friday, its lowest level against the greenback since May 2010, as European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi reiterated the possibility of more stimulus coming.

Draghi said in an interview published in the German business daily Handelsblatt that deflation remains a threat and that the ECB needs to be prepared to counter it.

Casino operator Melco Crown Entertainment, a joint venture involving Australian billionaire James Packer, plans to delist its shares in Hong Kong after gambling hub Macau reported its first ever fall in casino revenues.

Official figures published by the former Portuguese colony on Friday showed gaming revenues fell 2.6 percent year-on-year to 351.52 billion patacas ($44 billion) in 2014 -- the only drop since annual figures were first released in 2002.

The European Central Bank cannot entirely rule out the risk of the deflation in the eurozone, but that danger is limited, its chief Mario Draghi said in a newspaper interview Friday.

"The risk cannot be ruled out completely, but it's limited," Draghi told the business daily Handelsblatt.

Borrowing rates in France, Spain and Italy fell to fresh historic lows on Friday in thin holiday trading, as investors eyed possible new anti-deflation measures from the European Central Bank.

The yield on France's 10-year debt hit 0.812 percent, while the Spanish 10-year bond traded at 1.541 percent and the Italian at 1.819 percent -- beating previous records set on Tuesday.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff kicked off a second term Thursday, vowing to tackle corruption and revamp the economy as her government reels from a series of setbacks.

Brazil's economy, once booming, has barely grown during Rousseff's time in office, and her administration is embroiled in a multimillion-dollar graft scandal at state-owned oil giant Petrobras.

The euro edged lower against the dollar in Asia on Friday amid mounting speculation the European Central Bank will start buying sovereign bonds, analysts said.

The euro bought $1.2055 in afternoon Singapore trade -- near two-year lows -- from $1.2097 in New York on Wednesday before the New Year break.

Oil prices rose Friday in thin Asian trading during the first session of the New Year, as dealers welcomed a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude stockpiles, analysts said.

West Texas Intermediate for February delivery, the U.S. benchmark, rose 56 cents to $53.83 in afternoon trade. Brent crude for February gained 12 cents to $57.45.

Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff begins her second term Thursday, aiming to get economic growth back on track, and to rebuild government credibility after a major kickbacks scandal.

Thousands of supporters -- and pockets of detractors -- were due to gather and watch the 67-year-old left-wing former urban guerrilla arrive to receive the seals of office at a ceremony in Brasilia slated for 3:00 pm (1700 GMT).