Asian importers of Russian gas were scrambling on Thursday after Russian President Vladimir Putin said “unfriendly” countries must pay for Russian gas in roubles, in the latest jolt to global energy markets after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

European countries have to shoulder the burden of the economic response to the war in Ukraine.

Shell will invest up to 25 billion pounds ($33 billion) into the energy system in Britain over the next decade, a senior executive at the oil major said, and over 75 per cent of which will be funnelled into zero-carbon products and services.

The US Trade Representative’s office said on Wednesday it has reinstated 352 expired product exclusions from US “Section 301” tariffs on Chinese imports, well short of the 549 exclusions that it was previously considering.

The United States on Tuesday announced an agreement with Britain to end tariffs on steel and aluminum imports imposed by former president Donald Trump in 2018 on national security grounds.

Hundreds of companies have said they are withdrawing or suspending operations in Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, from energy producer Shell Plc to carmaker Hyundai Motor Co to PwC, a global professional services firm.

The consequences for the global financial system if Russia cannot pay its foreign debts are likely to be “limited,” a senior official at the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday.

Russian gas deliveries to Europe through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline across the Baltic Sea dipped slightly on Wednesday, while gas continued to flow eastwards from Germany into Poland along the Yamal-Europe pipeline.

British inflation shot up faster than expected last month to hit a new 30-year high, worsening a historic squeeze on household finances that finance minister Rishi Sunak is under pressure to ease in a budget update later on Wednesday.

Indian lenders are set to initiate debt recovery proceedings against Future Retail this week to safeguard their interests after rival Reliance unexpectedly took over some of the retailer’s stores, two bankers told Reuters.

China aims to increase renewable power, maintain crude oil output and boost natural gas production, as it seeks to balance energy security and achieve its climate change goals.

Oil slipped below $114 a barrel on Tuesday, giving up some of the previous day’s 7 per cent surge, as European Union members disagreed on a potential oil embargo on Russia, although persistent supply risks limited the decline.

The deadly crash of a China Eastern Airlines 737-800 could set back Boeing’s efforts to regain ground in the world’s biggest aircraft market and deliver more than 140 737 MAX jets already constructed for Chinese customers.

Sri Lanka ordered troops to petrol stations Tuesday as sporadic protests erupted among the thousands of motorists queueing up daily for scarce fuel.

Cotton prices rose to their highest level in more than a decade on Monday, due to a prolonged drought in parts of the central United States.

Oil prices jumped more than $4 on Monday, with Brent crude climbing above $111 a barrel, as European Union nations considered joining the United States in a Russian oil embargo and after a weekend attack on Saudi oil facilities.

German producer prices maintained their record-breaking rise in February, increasing 25.9 per cent year on year mainly because of energy prices, Federal Statistics Office data showed on Monday.

US President Joe Biden’s warning of  “consequences” for any aid China may give to Russia’s Ukraine war effort could force Chinese President Xi Jinping to choose between a longstanding lucrative trade relationship with the West and a growing strategic partnership with Moscow.

Japan on Sunday urged the United Arab Emirates to pump more oil to calm markets rocked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the latest major consumer to lobby Gulf producers.

US and British officials will begin two days of meetings in Baltimore on Monday to discuss strengthening trade ties, as the United States and its allies ratchet up pressure on Russia over its war in Ukraine and China for failing to condemn it.