The sharp decline in global oil prices has "greatly affected" Iraq, costing the country 27 percent of its projected revenues for the year, the oil ministry said on Saturday.

"The Iraqi economy and the federal budget were greatly affected by the projected decline in revenues, and more than 27 percent of its projected revenues for this year were lost," the ministry said.

China's trade growth decelerated in October but still was relatively robust as Chinese leaders try to reverse a deepening economic slowdown.

Exports rose 11.6 percent to $206.9 billion, down from September's 18-month high of 15.3 percent growth, trade data showed Saturday. Imports rose 4.6 percent to $161.5 billion, below forecasts.

A Pacific Rim summit on Saturday voiced cautious support for a vast free-trade zone proposal being pushed by China in the face of reported resistance from the United States, which is promoting its own regional trade pact.

China's promotion of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) idea -- and the narrative of Sino-U.S. trade rivalry on the issue -- has loomed as a major agenda item at the diplomatic gathering in Beijing.

Qatar suffered a rare setback in its London property buying spree on Friday when its offer to buy the company behind the landmark Canary Wharf office quarter was rejected.

Songbird, the property firm which controls 69 percent of Canary Wharf Group, said in a statement that its management has unanimously rejected a joint takeover approach from sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and U.S. company Brookfield Property Partners.

Russia's currency on Friday slid to a historic low, losing over 10 percent in value over the course of the week amid falling oil prices and the fallout of the Ukraine crisis.

The fall sparked panic as the euro reached the 60 ruble mark for the first time and the dollar passed 48 rubles.

A rebound in German exports caused the country's trade surplus to grow in September, nearly making up for a sharp drop the previous month, official data showed on Friday.

Exports expanded by 5.5 percent in September, lifting the trade surplus, the balance between imports and exports, the federal statistics office Destatis said in a statement.

Unemployment and rising income inequality will top concerns for global leaders in 2015, a World Economic Forum (WEF) study said Friday.

The organisation, which each year gathers the global elite in the plush Swiss ski resort of Davos, has drawn up a list of the top 10 issues likely to preoccupy leaders over the coming 12 to 18 months.

America's technology giants are drawing on their huge cash stockpiles to make big bets on investments and acquisitions that could prove to be visionary -- or end up as boondoggles.

Companies such as Amazon, Facebook and Google have been on a spending tear in the past year, pouring money into an array of companies, programs and technologies amid concerns that if they do not keep innovating they will be left in the dust.

French bank Societe Generale said Thursday its third quarter earnings leapt 56.6 percent to 836 million euros ($1.0 billion), beating expectations, in large part to reduced risk costs.

The bank was able to cut its provisions, money set aside to cover possible loan losses, from 1.1 billion to 642 million.

Saudi Aramco operations are unaffected by a leak and fire which hit a diesel fuel pipeline near the capital Riyadh, a company statement received on Thursday said.

The state-owned firm is the world's largest oil company in terms of crude production and exports.