Oil edged higher to $42 a barrel on Wednesday after hitting its lowest since April the previous day, supported by an industry report showing a fall in U.S. inventories and a weaker dollar.

Australia's central bank dropped interest rates to a new record low Tuesday after a recent run of soft inflation readings, with some economists forecasting further cuts ahead.

Euro zone business activity expanded a touch faster than expected last month as the region appeared, so far, to have largely shrugged off Britain's vote to leave the European Union, a survey found.

Diamond Cement Ltd yesterday launched the company's new brand: Diamond Coastal+.

It was only when Aye Aye Nge's pharmacy burned down for the second time that she thought about taking out insurance, a novelty in impoverished Myanmar where most people either can't afford to buy premiums or don't trust those selling them.

Ride-hailing service Uber could be banned in Taiwan after authorities accused it of operating illegally, with officials saying Wednesday a

Nearly 120,000 units of digital currency bitcoin worth about $72 million was stolen from the exchange platform Bitfinex in Hong Kong, rattling the global bitcoin community in the second-biggest security breach ever of such an exchange.

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd on Wednesday unveiled a new Galaxy Note smartphone with a curved screen and iris-recognition technology, seeking to build on the sales momentum that has helped it roar back to surging profit growth.

Two Sri Lankan economists told a summit attended by President Maithripala Sirisena and his finance minister on Tuesday the government's economic policies were destabilising and inconsistent, one calling its price controls "supreme idiocy".

Marking an end to the long and tumultuous debate on goods and services tax, India's Rajya Sabha yesterday approved a crucial constitutional amendment clearing the way for its biggest tax reform since independence. The Lok Sabha had already passed the key bill.

STANDARD Chartered reported an underlying pretax profit of $994 million in the six months to end-June, as cost-cutting, steady income and fewer bad loans helped the bank return to the black after a billion dollar loss in the second half of 2015.

The British government hailed a £344 million (410 million euro, $450 million) investment to expand London City Airport on Wednesday as evidence Britain was "open for business" despite its Brexit vote.

Oil prices slipped to fresh three-month lows Wednesday as worries about a global oversupply resurface ahead of the release of US stockpiles data later in the day.

Britain's economic growth unexpectedly accelerated in the second quarter in the run-up to the nation's shock EU exit referendum, official data showed Wednesday.

Australian inflation eased to a 17-year low in April-June, official figures showed Wednesday, raising the prospects of another interest rate cut to shore up the economy.

JAPAN'S government Wednesday announced a stimulus package worth more than 28 trillion yen ($266 billion) in its latest attempt to fire up the lukewarm economy, with the central bank expected to unveil its own measures this week.

Air France-KLM said Wednesday it managed to cut its net loss significantly in the first half of this year but warned attacks had reduced the attractiveness of France as a travel destination.

Egypt has asked the International Monetary Fund for financial support as it struggles to strengthen its economy, the IMF said Tuesday.

Britain will enter EU exit talks in a strong position, finance minister Philip Hammond declared Wednesday, after data revealed economic growth unexpectedly accelerated in the run-up to the Brexit referendum.

The sluggish global economy, more and healthier competition, and currency market turbulence again dragged on Coca-Cola Co.'s earnings in the second quarter, the company said Wednesday.