Striking workers blocked highways and staged mainly peaceful marches across Brazil Thursday in a day of industrial action called by unions to demand better work conditions and tougher measures to contain rising inflation.

The "National Day of Struggle" was called by the country's top five labor federations during last month's nationwide street protests for better public services and an end to endemic corruption.

Brazilian workers on Thursday blocked roads and staged protest rallies across the country in a day of industrial action called by major unions to press demands for better work conditions.

The "National Day of Struggles" was called by the country's five leading labor federations during last month's mass street protests to demand better public services and an end to endemic corruption.

Emerging economies will be the main force in the global oil market next year, driving demand to a record high level, International Energy Agency (IEA) data showed on Thursday.

Raising its demand forecast this year because of unseasonally cold weather, the IEA also signalled that in 2014 emerging economies will drive demand to a record 92.0 million barrels per day.

Japan's central bank on Thursday left its vast monetary easing programme unchanged and boosted its assessment of the economy, using the word "recover" for the first time in more than two years.

The Bank of Japan, which unveiled a gigantic bond-buying scheme in April, said the outlook for the world's number three economy was looking up, as brighter corporate and consumer spirits encouraged spending.

Online education service Coursera on Wednesday announced a fresh round of funding from the investment arm of the World Bank and other backers.

The Silicon Valley-based startup said that it took in $43 million from a group of investors that included the World Bank's International Finance Corporation and Russian venture capitalist Yuri Milner.

Behind the scenes, a team of international experts have for months been working on a plan to boost the stagnant Palestinian economy, set to be launched if peace talks with the Israelis resume.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry unveiled the broad contours of the scheme to attract some $4 billion in private-sector investment over the next three years at a World Economic Forum in Jordan in late May.

The Turkish central bank sold $200 million dollars on Wednesday, market sources said, in a renewed fight to hold up the value of the lira.

The central bank has been selling dollars since Monday when it announced urgent and "strong" action to defend the currency and contain overheated bank lending.

Ratings agency Standard and Poor's on Tuesday downgraded the sovereign rating of crisis-hit Italy by one notch to 'BBB' on worries over the country's ability to resist effects of a dilapidating recession.

"The rating action reflects our view of a further worsening of Italy's economic prospects coming on top of a decade of real growth averaging minus 0.04 percent," it said.

U.S. regulators Tuesday unveiled tough new capital requirements for the nation's eight largest banks in the newest move to strengthen the financial system in the wake of the 2008 crisis.

The proposed capital minimums are intended to reduce risk throughout the system and address the so-called "too big to fail" problem, in which the government could be forced into a rescue when giant institutions founder.

Global agency Fitch on Tuesday upgraded Latvia's credit rating by a notch to BBB+, just hours after the Baltic nation was green-lighted to become the eurozone's 18th member.

"The upgrade follows the announcement of ECOFIN's decision today to invite Latvia to join the eurozone on 1 January 2014," Fitch said in a statement, adding that the country's outlook was stable.