Finance ministers and central bank governors from the world's leading economies have gathered in Shanghai to discuss a response to the darkening global economic landscape. Among the many issues facing them is the plunge in commodity prices, market volatility, exchange rates and the slowdown of China's economy. G20 participants will try to agree on a communique by Saturday, setting out their policy responses before they depart home. Are the stimulus bells ringing?

Economy

Two national elections are also on the radar: Voting is underway in Ireland, with locals heading to the polls to elect 157 new members of parliament as a stellar recovery hangs in the balance. Iranians are also hitting the ballot boxes in the country's first elections since last summer's landmark nuclear accord. As part of a wider parliamentary election, voters will further decide on representatives for the Experts Assembly, a clerical body that appoints the supreme leader.

International talks to resolve the Syria crisis may restart in Geneva on March 7, after the United Nations suspended discussions earlier this month, urging countries involved in the meetings to do more preparatory work. The news comes after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told a Senate foreign relations committee it "may be too late" to keep Syria whole and suggested that Washington would support a partition plan if a ceasefire deal was unsuccessful.

The U.S. Commerce Department is set to announce its revised estimate of fourth-quarter gross domestic product at 8:30 a.m. ET. The government's initial figure showed growth of 0.7%, but that will likely be adjusted down to a 0.4% annual rate, as a result of lower inventory accumulation and weaker readings for both residential and non-residential investment. The report will also likely reveal that consumer spending rose by 0.3% in January after being flat in December, and display an uptick in inflation pressures.

Crude prices are shaking off some losses after top global producers agreed to discuss fresh efforts to stabilize the market. At a televised interview with broadcaster Telesur, Venezuelan Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino reaffirmed a mid-March meeting that would include Saudi Arabia, Russia and Qatar, to steady prices that have slumped 70% over a 20-month rout. Aside from the upcoming gathering, traders said sentiment in oil was helped by project deferments in the U.S. shale industry and job cuts that will slow production. Crude futures +2.1% to $33.76/bbl.

Stocks

Speaking of which...Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) is slashing its about 8% of its global workforce, or 5,000 positions, pressured by the prolonged slump in crude prices. "We are faced with the difficult reality that reductions are necessary to work through this challenging market environment," the company said in a statement. The latest cuts would bring Halliburton's total workforce reduction to 26K-27K since headcount peaked in 2014.

Warren Buffett will release his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) shareholders this weekend following another lackluster year that saw the conglomerate's stock price lag the broader market. "His underperformance is getting conspicuous. He must address it," said Doug Kass, head of Seabreeze Investment Partners. Another lingering question: Who will take over in coming years, given Buffett is 85, and second-in-command Charlie Munger is 92.

Royal Bank of Scotland swung to its eighth consecutive annual loss (-£2B) after taking a major hit from litigation and restructuring costs, while dealing another blow to government plans to sell off the state-backed lender. The results follow a major restructuring that started last year, which involved shrinking RBS's investment bank and exiting 25 of the 38 countries in which it operates, to focus on U.K. retail and commercial banking.

After confirming merger talks earlier this week, the London Stock Exchange (OTCPK:LDNXF) has outlined details of how it would merge with Deutsche Boerse (OTCPK:DBOEY): 1) The combined group would be a U.K. plc domiciled in London, with headquarters and stock listings there and in Frankfurt. 2) LSE Chief Executive Xavier Rolet would retire, while Deutsche's Carsten Kengeter would become CEO.

SunEdison jumped 36% in after-hours trading on Thursday, when reports surfaced that the solar-power company defeated an injunction on a deal with its yieldco, TerraForm Power (NASDAQ:TERP). In January, David Tepper-led hedge fund Appaloosa Management sued to prevent TerraForm's planned purchase of (SunEdison acquisition target) Vivint Solar's (NYSE:VSLR) rooftop solar installation portfolio. Appaloosa sought "immediate injunctive relief" last month, given that SunEdison's (NYSE:SUNE) acquisition of Vivint could close "at any time."

Republic Airways has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, blaming several quarters of falling revenue after having to ground aircraft amid a pilot shortage. The carrier, which feeds flights to American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL), Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) and United Continental (NYSE:UAL), listed assets of $3.6B and $3B of liabilities. Republic (NASDAQ:RJET) also said the bankruptcy process would allow it to continue normal business while restructuring its finances and contracts.

Hilton Worldwide is spinning off a bulk of its real estate business into a publicly traded REIT, along with a separate spinoff of its timeshare business, Hilton Grand Vacations. "The transactions...take advantage of both organic and inorganic growth opportunities as well as capital market and tax efficiencies," said Christopher Nassetta, CEO of Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT). "We intend to have the appropriate leadership, strategies and capital structures in place to set up all three companies for further success."

Attorneys for Philippe Dauman have failed to quash a deposition request, pushing the Viacom (VIA, VIAB) chief executive to testify about mogul Sumner Redstone's mental fitness. The ruling was the latest in a lawsuit filed by Redstone's ex-girlfriend Manuela Herzer, who has sued over her removal as the 92-year-old Redstone's healthcare agent in favor of Dauman. She claims Redstone was not mentally competent to make that decision in October 2015.

Sharp CEO Kozo Takahashi and Foxconn (OTC:FXCOF) Chief Executive Terry Gou are planning to meet in China, after the latter put a deal to take over the ailing Japanese electronics maker on hold. Reason for the delay? Foxconn attributed the wait to "new material information," with sources explaining that the firm was surprised by a new list containing ¥300B ($2.7B) worth of "contingent liabilities." Sharp (OTCPK:SHCAY) shares plummeted 11.4% in Tokyo on the news.

Amazon is making it easier for longtime shareholders to nominate a director to its board, rendering it one of a growing list of companies offering so-called proxy access. In a new securities filing, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) said it amended its bylaws to allow a shareholder, or group of as many as 20 investors, holding at least 3% of its shares continuously for three years to include board member nominees on its annual proxy statement.

More Apple drama...The company has officially filed a motion asking a judge to throw out an order to help create a backdoor to unlock an iPhone 5C used by one of the San Bernardino shooters. In addition to reiterating its argument that the move would undermine the security and privacy of iPhone users, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) asserts the court order is unconstitutional based on its First and Fifth Amendment rights.

Thursday's Key Earnings

AB Inbev (NYSE:BUD) -1.9% as marketing failed to lift volumes.
Apache (NYSE:APA) -2.1% following a big slump in revenues.
Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) +10% AH after topping expectations.
Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) +2.5% despite slowing sales, soft outlook.
Gap (NYSE:GPS) -2.6% AH on light guidance.
Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) +15.1% after a Q4 beat, talks with FTC.
J.C. Penney (NYSE:JCP) +9% AH following an upbeat holiday quarter.
Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) +4% AH with a set of strong earnings.
Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) -7% AH after missing estimates.
Seadrill (NYSE:SDRL) flat on mixed results.
Sears (NASDAQ:SHLD) +3.2% shrinking its footprint, layoffs.
SeaWorld (NYSE:SEAS) -9.2% after acknowledging spying claims.
Weight Watchers (NYSE:WTW) -15% as subscriptions continued to fall.

Today's Markets

In Asia, Japan +0.3% to 16188. Hong Kong +2.5%% to 19364. China +1% to 2767. India +0.8% to 23154.
In Europe, at midday, London +1.2%. Paris +1.8%. Frankfurt +2%.
Futures at 6:20, Dow +0.7%. S&P +0.7%. Nasdaq +0.9%. Crude +2.1% to $33.76. Gold -0.4% to $1234.50.
Ten-year Treasury Yield +3 bps to 1.73%

Today's Economic Calendar

8:30 GDP Q4
8:30 International trade in goods
8:30 Personal Income and Outlays
10:00 Reuters/UofM Consumer Sentiment
10:15 Fed's Powell and Williams: "Fed Communication Away from the Zero Lower Bound"
11:30 Results of $28B, 7-Year Note Auction
1:00 PM Baker-Hughes Rig Count
1:30 PM Fed's Reserve Gov. Lael Brainard speech