Volkswagen on Tuesday said it had sold 10.3 million cars worldwide last year, a new record for the German auto giant, despite grappling with a massive emissions cheating scandal.

French cosmetics giant L'Oreal said Tuesday it had agreed to buy three leading skincare brands from Valeant for $1.3 billion to give its US offering a facelift.

Messaging app Snapchat said it would make London the home of its international operations, delivering another vote of confidence in Britain's tech standing as the country prepares to leave the European Union.

China's producer prices rose at their swiftest pace in more than five years in December, the government said Tuesday, in a sign the world's biggest trader could begin exporting inflation to the global economy.

With rising profits and record sales, the US auto market is a tempting target for many foreign car makers, but new entrants face many challenges to finding lasting success.

Chinese e-commerce titan Alibaba will take control of domestic department store Intime through a $2.6 billion privatisation scheme, the companies said Tuesday, sending shares of the mall operator surging.

Swedish automaker Volvo said Sunday that it expects to export half of the cars produced at a future plant in the United States.

Oil fell by $1 a barrel on Monday as signs of growing US production outweighed optimism that many other producers, including Russia, were sticking to a deal to cut supplies in a bid to bolster the market.

Embattled President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday raised the minimum wage by 50 percent in Venezuela, a country with astronomical inflation.

British law firm Harcus Sinclair UK said on Monday it had launched legal action in Britain against Volkswagen, seeking thousands of pounds of compensation each for British drivers affected by the carmaker's diesel emissions scandal.

The Turkish lira, pounded by higher-than-expected inflation and security fears, hit record lows against the dollar on Monday after a gloomy Moody's statement.

Iraq, Opec's second-largest oil producer, has given full supply allocations of Basra crude to three refiners in Asia and Europe for February, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Monday.

Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday flaunted robust tax receipts to dismiss reports of economic disruption following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to abolish high-value currency bills.

Millions of Londoners endured a chaotic start to the week on Monday after a strike shut down most of the Underground network, including many city centre stations.

Mercedes-Benz is expected to reach its goal of becoming the largest premium carmaker four years early - a feat achieved, ironically, only after it stopped chasing market share and focused on making stylish high-tech cars loved by consumers.

Saudi Arabia hopes its plan to bring a further 1.3 million women into the workforce by 2030 will be given a lift from ride-hailing apps Uber and Dubai-based rival Careem.

US fast-food giant McDonald's will sell a controlling stake in its China and Hong Kong business for up to $2.08 billion to a consortium including state-owned Citic and the Carlyle Group, it was announced Monday.

German carmaker Volkswagen will recall almost 50,000 vehicles in China due to brake problems when using cruise control, according to the country's quality regulator.

HMD Global, the Finnish company that owns the rights to use Nokia's brand on mobile phones, announced on Sunday its first smartphone, targeted for Chinese users with a price of 1,699 yuan ($246).

The smartphone continues to change the world a decade after the debut of the iPhone, even as Apple is under pressure to come up with a new wonder.