Factory price inflation eased in April, data showed Wednesday, fuelling concerns about a growth slowdown in the world's number two economy and denting hopes for a pick-up a global reflation.

The industry body for Germany's powerful chemicals sector on Wednesday forecast a pick-up in growth for 2017, after a strong first quarter stoked by increased demand at home and abroad.

Brazil's annual inflation rate fell to 4.08 percent in April, lower than official estimates and raising hopes that the South American economic giant is emerging from a prolonged slump.

Europe's development bank predicted Wednesday a pick-up in economic growth in most of the regions where it operates this year as rebounding oil prices boost Russia and other commodity exporters.

Cotton planting in India, the world's biggest producer of the fibre, is likely to rise by 15 percent in the 2017/18 marketing season to a three-year high as farmers switch away from other crops, likely boosting cotton production and exports.

Australia's banking sector reacted with fury Wednesday to a government plan to slug lenders with a hefty new levy, calling it a "naive" tax grab that sent the wrong signal to global financial markets.

Private US companies hired at a slightly slower pace in April, with new employment nearly entirely in the services sector, payroll firm ADP reported Wednesday.

German carmaker Volkswagen on Wednesday confirmed its forecasts for 2017 after boosting revenue and profits in the first quarter, even as its emissions cheating scandal continues to make headlines.

Mahindra & Mahindra has stopped selling its electric car in the United Kingdom due to meagre sales and is winding up operations there, according to a document seen by Reuters, in a setback for the Indian automaker's global ambitions.

Oil prices rebounded from near 2017 lows on Wednesday after preliminary data showed a much larger-than-expected fall in US crude stocks, reviving bullish sentiment about easing oversupply.

China is expected this week to conduct the maiden test flight of a home-grown passenger jet built to meet soaring domestic travel demand and challenge the dominance of Boeing and Airbus.

European Union countries agreed on Wednesday new rules to combat dumping, a move that targets cheap imports of products such as steel from Chinese manufacturers.

China will boost authenticity and compliance checks on trade and investment this year, its forex regulator said on Wednesday, and increase checks and punishment on illegal forex activities.

The Chinese yuan and Indian rupee are expected to weaken against the dollar over the coming year, a Reuters poll found, with the greenback supported by US interest rate hikes, though analysts have trimmed their bearish bets on Asian currencies from the previous poll.

With a booming trade in diamond cutting and textile manufacturing, the port city of Surat in India's western state of Gujarat is a melting pot for migrants from across the country seeking work and business opportunities.

Preparing a meeting of the Group of 20 economic powers is like "herding cats", German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday as her officials try to reach consensus among the group ahead of a leaders' summit she will host in July.

It is a sign of Apple's success but also a thorny problem: its cash stockpile has hit a staggering $256.8 billion, sparking debate on what do with such massive reserves.

Despite an agreement reached Tuesday on a reform package, Europe still needs to provide "credible" debt relief to Greece before the International Monetary Fund can provide more financing, an IMF official said.

US bank JPMorgan will move hundreds of staff from London to Dublin, Frankfurt and Luxembourg as part of their Brexit plans, the firm's head of investment banking said Wednesday.

Samsung Electronics is predicted to become the world’s largest chipmaker in the coming quarter, displacing Intel, which has retained the top spot for the past 24 years.