The Philippine economy expanded 7 percent in the third quarter, but growth is expected to slow because of devastation from the super typhoon that hit eastern and central regions earlier this month.

Statistics agency chief Jose Ramon Albert said Thursday that growth in the latest quarter was driven by services and industry.

Venezuela's leftist President Nicolas Maduro announced Wednesday he will unveil a second package of economic measures under an emergency decree to counter what he calls an economic war by the business sector.

He said the measures to be announced Friday will regulate imports, on which the oil-rich nation is highly dependent for basic goods.

Dubai beat off opposition from Brazil, Russia and Turkey on Wednesday to win the right to host the 2020 World Expo, sparking celebrations in the Gulf city and a stunning fireworks display at the world's tallest building.

City authorities declared Thursday a school holiday to celebrate the victory.

Iran and the United States are to establish a joint chamber of commerce within a month, with direct flights also planned, an Iranian official said Wednesday in a newspaper report.

"Iran-U.S. chamber of commerce will be launched in less than one month," Abolfazl Hejazi, a member of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, told the English-language Iran Daily.

Dubai on Wednesday beat off opposition from Brazil, Russia and Turkey to win the right to host the 2020 World Expo.

The Gulf city beat Russia's Ekaterinberg in the final round of voting to clinch a prestigious event that is credited with delivering a huge boost to tourism and business in the host city.

Thailand's central bank unexpectedly lowered the cost of credit Wednesday as escalating protests to topple the government add to pressure on the economy.

The Bank of Thailand said it lowered its policy interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 2.25 percent, hoping to stimulate lending and investment.

Oil exports from Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan to Turkey could start next month, the region's prime minister said, despite a dispute with Baghdad over how to divide the spoils from its energy resources.

Necirvan Barzani told reporters in Ankara late Tuesday that a pipeline from the Kurdish region could start carrying oil "before Christmas", without elaborating.

French President Francois Hollande visits Spain on Wednesday for a bilateral summit seeking a common stance on banking supervision to avoid a repeat of the eurozone debt crisis.

Hollande is pushing for European authorities to adopt common measures to prevent costly bank failures and to directly recapitalize lenders in difficulty.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday launched the construction of the country's biggest atomic power plant and vowed to pursue further projects to make nuclear the largest energy source.

The 2,200-megawatt plant is to be built with Chinese technical assistance on the Arabian Sea coast at Paradise Beach, 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of Karachi.

Iran's president opened a two-day meeting of the Economic Cooperation Organization in Tehran Tuesday with a call for reforms to the regional body that would boost its "indefensible" trade volumes.

"With the beginning of the third decade of cooperation, ECO needs to undertake some reforms," President Hassan Rouhani said in his opening speech, as cited by local media.