Britain's finance minister George Osborne will use next month's post-election budget to push ahead with new laws to force governments to run a surplus.

Iceland's central bank said Wednesday it had raised its interest rates for the first time since November 2012, citing the risk of rising inflation as an economic recovery accelerates after a devastating crash.

Diplomats working to reduce carbon emissions from passenger planes globally may give some developing countries more leeway to meet new rules, a key official with the world's main airline industry group said on Tuesday.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is preparing to launch the country's biggest overhaul of labour laws since independence in a bid to create millions of manufacturing jobs, at the risk of stirring up a political backlash that could block other critical reforms.

Foreigners working in the energy-rich Arab states of the Gulf sent more than $100 billion in remittances to their home countries last year, an economic report showed Tuesday.

As fuel prices drop and more planes fly filled to capacity, North America is leading the airline industry in profits while much of the world still struggles, officials said Monday.

Chinese inflation fell to 1.2 percent in May, data showed Tuesday, the latest sign that growth in the world's number two economy is stalling and suggesting more monetary easing may be on the way.

Apple is making its play to shake up online music with a subscription service combining on-demand songs, streamed playlists and a social stage for musicians.

BRITAIN'S regulators will unveil plans on Wednesday that aim to clean up behaviour in the financial markets, where banks have been fined billions of pounds for trying to rig currencies and interest rate benchmarks.

The Sahara Group of jailed Indian tycoon Subrata Roy said Monday it had reached a deal with Britain's billionaire Reuben brothers to avert the sale of three luxury hotels overseas.

GREECE and the European Union traded barbs Sunday over Brussels' latest demands for economic reforms in Athens, with EU commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker accusing Greece's premier of misrepresenting the proposals that Athens has termed "absurd".

UKRAINE'S finance minister said Sunday her potential failure to reach an elusive debt restructuring deal with private lenders should not keep the IMF from approving an essential new payment for Kiev when its board meets later this month.

Germany's trade surplus widened in April from the previous month as exports grew by 1.9 percent, official data showed on Monday.

Chinese imports fell for a seventh straight month in May while exports also sank, according to official data Monday, as the world's second biggest economy shows protracted weakness despite government easing measures.

The OECD on Wednesday sharply lowered its global growth forecasts for 2015 and 2016, dragged down partly by a "transitory" shortfall in US performance and by businesses and governments skimping on investment.

Unemployment in the eurozone dropped to a three-year low of 11.1 percent in April, official data showed on Wednesday, in a sign that the fragile jobs market in Europe could be on the mend.

Recent unrest in the Middle East and North Africa has little impact on oil prices because the market has become "comfortable" with risk, Saudi Arabia's Oil Minister said Wednesday.

US auto sales accelerated in May to their fastest pace since 2005 as easy credit and low fuel prices lured buyers into showrooms, industry data showed Tuesday.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling party called for a "cautious response" to the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), but will leave the decision on joining to the premier, a draft report showed on Wednesday.

Australia's economy was stronger-than-expected in the first quarter of the year as exports and consumer spending boosted growth, data showed Wednesday, reinforcing a decision to keep interest rates on hold after two cuts this year.