The French auto industry was hit again on Tuesday when Renault said that it planned to cut its staff in the country by 7,500 workers by 2016 to become more competitive and prepare for the hiring of others with specific skills.

The company said that it would shed 5,700 jobs through natural attrition, with the balance coming from the extension of an early retirement program to all employees due to retire in three year's time, subject to an agreement with unions.

Once cogs in a dynamic industrial engine that helped power Syria's economy, the factories in a sprawling zone in the heart of battle-ravaged Aleppo now stand largely silent, the workers mostly fled.

In their place, thousands of people sheltering from the violence that has swept Syria's northern commercial capital since July, and from the severe winter weather that has brought misery to much of the Middle East.

French President Francois Hollande called on Tuesday for pumping more investments in renewable energy projects to prepare for the post-oil era and to avoid global warming.

"If we don't spend ... we will have a catastrophe," Hollande told the opening session of the World Future Energy Summit (WEFS) in Abu Dhabi.

Western nations have failed to capitalize on China's economic rise as they struggle with their own problems, leaving others to benefit from the Asian giant's insatiable demand, HSBC said Tuesday.

"The world economy is increasingly led by China. Those nations raising their China exposure have outperformed. Western nations, faced with internal discord, have failed to grab the opportunity," the bank said.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Monday urged Congress to raise the nation's borrowing limit as Democrats and Republicans battle over the federal budget.

"It's very, very important that Congress take the necessary action to raise the debt ceiling to avoid the situation where the government doesn't pay its bills," Bernanke said at a University of Michigan forum.

Prime Minister David Cameron must not risk jeopardising Britain's EU membership and damaging the weak economy, business chiefs warned ahead of the premier's key Europe speech later this week.

The Conservative premier was due to address the nation's strained relationship with the European Union on Friday, having already stated that he wanted to renegotiate the conditions of its membership with the 27-country bloc.

A visiting minister pledged Britain's full cooperation with the Egyptian authorities on Monday in recovering assets suspected to have been misappropriated by Hosni Mubarak's regime.

But Minister of State at the Home Office Jeremy Browne added that due process needed to be followed in proving that any assets targeted were ill-gotten.

President Barack Obama warned of a new economic crisis Monday and said global stock markets would go "haywire" unless Republicans in Congress agree to raise the U.S. sovereign debt ceiling.

"To even entertain the idea of this happening, of the United States of America not paying its bills, it is irresponsible, it is absurd," Obama said in repeating his demand for a debt limit rise.

Swatch Group, the world's leading watchmaker, said on Monday it would acquire U.S. jeweler and watchmaker Harry Winston for up to $1.0 billion (750 million euros).

The Swiss group, most known for its brightly-colored plastic watches, said it would pay $750 million to acquire the company and thus expand its luxury offerings and take a first step into high-end jewelry.

The UAE and Argentina signed on Monday an agreement to cooperate in the field of peaceful nuclear energy during a visit by President Cristina Kirchner, the state news agency WAM reported.

The memorandum of understanding was signed by Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan and his Argentine counterpart Hector Timerman, WAM said.