Argentina told a U.S. lawyer Monday that a court order demanding it pay more than $1.3 billion in debts by the end of the month had to be stayed so Buenos Aires can avoid defaulting.

Economy Minister Axel Kicillof outlined Argentina's long-running position during four hours of talks in New York with attorney Daniel Pollack, appointed to break the impasse over debt payments.

Germany's Commerzbank is negotiating a fine with US authorities of at least 500 million dollars over allegations it dealt with countries blacklisted by the US, such as Iran, the New York Times reported late Monday.

An agreement could be announced as early as this summer, the newspaper said, quoting what it called people briefed on the matter.

Oil prices eased in Asia Tuesday as dealers await the resumption of disrupted Libyan crude exports, while ebbing fears about fighting in major producer Iraq also weighed, analysts said.

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery dipped 11 cents to $103.42 while Brent crude was down 19 cents at $110.05.

German industrial production contracted in May, hit by the number of public holidays, data showed on Monday. 

According to regular data compiled by the economy ministry, industrial output decreased by 1.8 percent in May, after slipping by 0.3 percent in April. 

Argentine representatives hold talks with a court-appointed arbiter in New York on Monday hoping to resolve an impasse over debt payments to hedge funds as the country faces possible default.

The government of President Cristina Kirchner announced late Sunday that Economy Minister Axel Kicillof will head the team of negotiators.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan appears all but assured of winning upcoming Turkish presidential polls, but he could find himself in charge of a far more fragile economy than in the last decade of his rule.

Analysts say the Turkish strongman is jeopardizing the long-term health of the economy by picking a fight with the nominally independent central bank and pushing it towards a looser monetary policy at a time of stubbornly high inflation.

Dubai is planning to build a temperature-controlled city featuring the world's largest mall and an indoor park, as well as hotels, health resorts and theatres, the developer said.

Already home to one of the globe's biggest indoor shopping complexes, Dubai Mall, the glitzy emirate known for its love of grandiose projects said it is now planning to build the "Mall of the World".

Pope Francis denounced "the scourge of unemployment" during a visit to one of Italy's poorest regions on Saturday, and said businesses had a responsibility to help get people back into work.

"It is necessary to put human dignity at the center of every point of view and every action. Other interests, even if legitimate, are secondary," he told a crowd of thousands during a mass in the Molise region.

How does the U.S. economy do it?

Europe is floundering. China faces slower growth. Japan is struggling to sustain tentative gains.

Hungarian lawmakers approved Friday a set of radical measures to ease household mortgage debt despite criticism from banks, which expect to foot a bill of several billion euros.

The changes are the latest attempt by Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government to help around a million Hungarians whose repayment rates on foreign currency mortgages rocketed after the 2008-09 financial crisis.