Debt accumulated by businesses and individuals worldwide could slow economic recoveries from the pandemic crisis, the IMF warned Monday.

The World Bank is seeking to create a $170 billion emergency fund to help the poorest nations being buffeted by multiple crises, the bank’s President David Malpass said Monday.

India today urged the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to urgently provide financial assistance to the economic crisis-hit Sri Lanka.

China’s coal output rose 15 per cent in March from the same month a year ago, with daily production climbing to a record, as Beijing urged miners to crank up operations to ensure steady market supply.

Around 200,000 employees of foreign companies in Moscow could lose their jobs due to sanctions over Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine, the city’s mayor said on Monday.

Asian stocks closed lower on Monday in cautious trade, as figures showed China’s economic growth accelerated in the first quarter of the year, but the government warned of  “significant challenges” ahead.

Sri Lanka’s worst economic crisis has triggered an unprecedented wave of spontaneous protests as the island nation of 22 million people struggles with prolonged power cuts and a shortage of essentials, including fuel and medicines.

A key fuel retailer in Sri Lanka raised prices by up to 35 per cent on Monday as the cash-strapped government was set to open crucial bailout talks with the International Monetary Fund.

China’s economic growth accelerated in the first quarter of the year to 4.8 per cent, official data showed Monday, but the government warned of  “significant challenges” ahead while massive Covid-19 lockdowns started to bite.

Wall Street banks’ commodities trading exposures are rising, which could leave them vulnerable to large swings in asset values following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, first quarter earnings disclosures showed.

Libya’s National Oil Corporation announced Sunday the closure of production at a major oil field in the country’s south, declaring a “force majeure”.

Sri Lanka on Saturday announced a five-day share trading halt after the crisis-hit country hiked interest rates and declared a default on its external debt during the traditional New Year holiday, as trade unions and top cricket stars joined protests demanding the president’s resignation.

Alternatives for Russian thermal coal are difficult to find as the market is getting tighter, the head of a group representing Japanese utilities said on Friday.

Some big US banks have again started stockpiling cash to cushion potential loan losses due to growing worries over the war in Ukraine and the impact of inflation on the US economy, although trading continues to be bright spot for Wall Street.

The European Union’s forthcoming sanctions on Russia will target banks, in particular Sberbank, as well as oil, the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen told a German newspaper.

Some big US banks have again started stockpiling cash to cushion potential loan losses due to growing worries over the war in Ukraine and the impact of inflation on the US economy, although trading continues to be bright spot for Wall Street.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to travel to India next week to discuss trade and security with his counterpart Narendra Modi, who has taken a neutral stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The United States has linked North Korean hackers to the theft of hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency tied to the popular online game Axie Infinity, the US Treasury Department said on Thursday.

The mounting cost of China’s zero-Covid policy threatens to derail Beijing’s ambitious GDP target, analysts say, as supply chains snarl, ports face delays and Shanghai remains mired in lockdown.

Russian state-owned gas producer Gazprom continued to supply natural gas to Europe via Ukraine on Saturday at the pace of 74.6 million cubic metres per day, in accordance with requests from European consumers, the company said.