Now for a look at the Chinese economy. Growth in the manufacturing sector improved to a six-month high in February, beating economists' expectations. That's according to a survey released by Caixin on Thursday.

The CaixinMarkit Manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index edged up to 51.6 last month, up a tenth of a point from January. Total new orders rose, and there was an improvement in client demand. The findings were largely at odds with a downbeat official reading on Wednesday. That's because the Caixin survey focuses more on small and mid-sized companies, while the official PMI concentrates on the larger official version.