Oil prices rose Monday, extending recent bumper gains in line with rising global stock markets, and despite poor Chinese and Japanese economic data, traders said.

HSBC Holdings could move around 1,000 employees from London to Paris in the event that Britain votes to leave the European Union, the bank's Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver was quoted saying by Sky News on Monday.

Japan's bid to revive its once-soaring economy is on the ropes as an equity market bloodbath and resurgent yen threaten to knock Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's growth plan to the canvas.

The European Union will "lurch very much in the wrong direction" if Britain votes to leave in an in/out referendum, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond warned Sunday.

Germany wants to carry out unannounced emissions tests on all carmakers, Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt said on Sunday,

British engine maker Rolls-Royce has cut its shareholder dividend for the first time in almost 25 years and said 2016 would be "challenging", but its shares nevertheless soared.

Europe's airline sector is on course for further consolidation, while the region offers "massive opportunities" for growth, according to Carolyn McCall, chief executive of British budget airline EasyJet.

China's central bank chief has blamed foreign speculators in part for volatility in the yuan and said there is no basis for further depreciation, according to an interview in Caixin magazine.

Iran remains essentially off limits to US banks, despite the lifting of some US sanctions following the landmark Iranian nuclear deal.

PepsiCo Inc reported better-than-expected quarterly net revenue, as higher sales of snacks and beverages in North America helped reduce the impact of a strong dollar.

France and Italy reported falls in December industrial production on Wednesday, a day after Germany did the same, raising fears that eurozone economic growth is slowing even more than feared.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen warned Wednesday that the US economy faced risks from tightening domestic financial conditions as well as global economic turmoil.

Thai authorities have registered more than 70,000 previously undocumented foreign workers in its fishing industry, navy officials said Thursday, part of a bid by the junta to stave off a potentially ruinous ban on its seafood exports.

Twitter Inc reported its first quarter with no growth in users since it went public, stoking fresh concerns on how long it will take for the company to reverse the trend.

Long seen as a destination strewn with shortcomings, Iran is making a fresh pitch for tourists, with the recent lifting of economic sanctions providing an opportunity to cash in.

Four state-run banks reported a spike in bad loans and provisions for sour debt on Tuesday after a clean-up exercise ordered by their regulator, sending three of them to net losses for the fiscal third quarter.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday unveiled plans for a "big bang" loosening of restrictions on foreign investment in nearly 50 sectors to encourage competition in an economy long dominated by powerful vested interests.

COMPANIES with 30 percent female executives rake in as much as six percentage points more in profits, according to a study on Monday, feeding into a global debate over the scarcity of women in decision-making business roles.

US job openings surged in December and the number of Americans voluntarily quitting work hit a nine-year high, pointing to labour market strength despite a slowdown in economic growth.

Finnish telecoms network equipment maker Nokia on Wednesday said it holds about 91 percent of the shares in France's Alcatel-Lucent following the second round of its 15.6 billion euro ($17.6 billion) all-stock offer.