The oil market drifted higher Thursday as investors digested an upbeat demand forecast from the head of the OPEC crude producers' cartel.

Brent North Sea crude for delivery in November added seven cents to stand at $51.40 per barrel just after midday in London.

Shares in Deutsche Bank managed to eke out gains Thursday even though the company said it would post a multibillion-euro loss in the third quarter and may scrap this year's dividend payment.

In an unscheduled statement late Wednesday, Germany's biggest bank said it expects to report a third-quarter net loss of 6.2 billion euros ($7 billion) because of a combination of write-downs and litigation costs. It also said its management board will recommend a reduction or possible elimination of the dividend for this year.

The government of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras survived a no-confidence vote early Thursday morning, bolstering the left-wing leader as he gets down to implementing reforms demanded by creditors.

The governing coalition of the premier's left-wing Syriza party and the nationalist Independent Greeks (ANEL) used their 155-strong majority to pass the motion through the 300-seat parliament.

The dollar declined further against some emerging Asian currencies Thursday on waning expectations of an early rise in U.S. interest rates.

With last Friday's below-par U.S. jobs report muddying the Federal Reserve's plans for lifting borrowing costs by the end of the year, many higher-yielding, or riskier, units have benefited.

Russian gas giant Gazprom said Wednesday its TurkStream pipeline project with Turkey would be delayed as tensions between Moscow and Ankara peak over Russia's intervention in the Syrian conflict. 

"Given that there is no intergovernmental agreement, the timeframe will be postponed," Russian news agencies quoted Gazprom deputy CEO Alexander Medvedev as saying, referring to a deadline next year for building the first of four pipelines.

Iraq continues to be a complex jurisdiction in which to operate, and this is the case from a tax perspective, as the legislative framework and approach of the tax authority continue to evolve. However, according to Deloitte’s latest report “Doing business guide – understanding Iraq’s tax position,” the country still offers numerous investment opportunities, particularly in the energy and security sectors.

Iraq’s 2015 Budget Law introduced a number of provisions aimed at broadening the tax revenue base through introduction of new sales taxes, applicable to consumer products such as tobacco and internet services, amongst others, in addition to the implementation of the long-awaited customs duty law. Personal income taxes for employees working in Iraq were also targeted, with a reduction in the legal allowances and tax bands applicable to both Iraqi nationals and expatriates alike. All of this results in a scope of taxation that is much broader than many neighboring countries in the Middle East.

The new chief of embattled carmaker Volkswagen said the recall of diesel cars affected by the pollution cheating scandal could start by January and end by the end of 2016.

"We will this week present our proposals for technical solutions to the Federal Motor Transport Authority," Mueller told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung daily in an interview published Wednesday.

The Bank of Japan held fire on expanding its already huge stimulus program Wednesday, despite mounting pressure on policymakers in the face of sluggish growth and stagnant prices.

The decision, after a two-day meeting, follows a string of disappointing data that have raised questions about the effectiveness of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's drive to kickstart the economy, which contracted in the second quarter of the year.

Kick-starting the sluggish global economy and funding the climate-change fight top the agenda this week as finance ministers and central bank chiefs from around the world gather in Peru.

Setting the stage for the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, the IMF cut its 2015 growth forecast for the world economy Tuesday to 3.1 percent, predicting the worst year since the global recession of 2009.

The halal economy is set to grow as the world's Muslim population expands and more products are certified to comply with Islamic sharia law, experts said on Tuesday.

The range of halal products, from goods not containing pork or alcohol to financial and tourism services, is rising as the global Muslim population grows.