Britain's unemployment rate has struck a new 44-year low, official data showed Wednesday, as the uncertainty of Brexit boosts temporary hirings.

Qatar's economy has been hit by the sanctions imposed by a Saudi-led Arab bloc but the emirate's economy is strong enough to survive, analysts say.

Britain's annual inflation rate steadied in July, with an expected rise failing to materialise as the pound recovers from a Brexit-fuelled slump, official data showed Tuesday.

The Damascus International Fair, the top event on pre-war Syria's economic calendar, is making a comeback this week after a five-year absence with western companies among participants from 23 countries.

Australia's biggest bank has admitted failures costing staff and customers millions of dollars as the troubled lender faces legal action over alleged breaches of money laundering and terror financing laws.

- Economy -The oil-exporting nation's 2016 gross domestic product is put at $333 billion by the IMF -- but that's calculated on the official currency exchange rate. If the current black market rate to the dollar were used, that number would be significantly less, as highlighted by Venezuelan analysts who speak of less than half that. The government hasn't released an official figure.

China's industrial output, a key engine of growth, slowed sharply in July as government efforts to rein in debt weighed on demand and economic activity, official data showed Monday.

The figures come as the authorities have sought to tighten regulations to tame debt as well as reduce excess capacity left over from massive government-backed infrastructure spending at the height of the global financial crisis.

OPEC pumped more oil in July as global oil supplies rose for the third straight month, the IEA said Friday, giving figures that cast further doubt on the cartel's pledge to cut output to raise prices.

Credit Suisse barred its traders from transacting some Venezuelan government bonds and required other Venezuela-connected transactions to undergo a special review for reputational risk, a bank spokesman said Thursday.

Equity screens were a sea of red in Asia Friday and the dollar slumped against the yen as investors fled to safe haven assets after US President Donald Trump doubled down on his North Korea rhetoric.