The global death toll from the coronavirus neared 400,000 on Sunday with fatalities accelerating in Latin America, as oil-producing countries agreed to extend output cuts to offset a collapse in prices caused by the pandemic.

Syria's pound hit record lows on the black market Saturday trading at over 2,300 to the dollar, less than a third of its official value, traders said, ahead of new US sanctions.

OPEC and its allies are to meet via video conference Saturday to assess their current deal to slash production as oil prices tentatively recover on easing coronavirus lockdowns. 

The further easing of lockdown measures and signs that economies could be past the worst of the coronavirus crisis kept investors upbeat Thursday, but markets fluctuated on profit-taking and concerns over China-US tensions.

Private companies shed another 2.76 million jobs in May following nearly 20 million job losses in April due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to data released Wednesday from payrolls firm ADP.

Italy reopened to travelers from Europe on Wednesday, three months after the country went into coronavirus lockdown, with all hopes pinned on reviving the key tourism industry as the summer season begins.

The head and members of the Industrialists Association of Choueifat and Suburbs on Tuesday held an “important meeting” with Industry Minister Imad Hoballah and the Ministry's Director General Dany Jadoun, the Association said.

Iberia protested Tuesday after the Spanish government pledged to sue 17 airlines for failing to inform travelers about their right to a refund for flights cancelled during the pandemic.

World stock markets surged Tuesday on the back of an easing in both coronavirus lockdowns and China-U.S. tensions, dealers said.

Syria's stock market on Tuesday suspended trading for the largest cellular company in the country, owned by a cousin of the president and one of Syria's richest businessmen.

The decision by the Syrian Commission of Financial Markets and Securities marked another development in a deepening financial dispute within the Assad family, which has ruled Syria for five decades. The company, Syriatel, is one of the country's largest employers, with thousands of staff and 11 million subscribers.