Most Asian share markets were subdued on Friday and the dollar held onto its gains from safe-haven flows, after soft economic data from U.S. and China magnified concerns of a global slowdown, although Japanese stocks outperformed.
Chile's senate approved on Wednesday a long-awaited new mining royalty bill, passing it back to the lower chamber for a final vote that could come as early as next week.
China has dramatically increased use of the yuan to buy Russian commodities over the past year, with nearly all of its purchases of oil, coal and some metals from its neighbour now settled in the Chinese currency instead of dollars, multiple trading executives with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
China's imports of major commodities lost momentum in April as the strong start to the year faded amid uncertainty about the strength and composition of the recovery in the world's second-biggest economy.