Global air passenger traffic will recover more slowly than expected this year because coronavirus variants have created strong headwinds, an industry group warned Wednesday.

Lebanon's economic meltdown is not just leaving gaping holes in state coffers, with thieves now plucking Beirut's manhole covers for scrap.

An Istanbul court on Wednesday sentenced three Turks to four years and two months in prison for helping smuggle former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn in a musical instrument case to Lebanon from Japan.

The court convicted two pilots and an employee of a small private airline, who moved the tycoon while he was out on bail facing financial misconduct charges in December 2019.

London's Heathrow airport dived into a net loss of £2.0 billion last year, a result that "underlines the devastating impact of Covid-19 on aviation", it said Wednesday.

Asian markets suffered fresh losses Wednesday as concerns about rising inflation and frothy equity prices continued to sap confidence, with investors unmoved by reassurances from Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell that officials would maintain record-low interest rates for as long as needed.

Exempting Covid-19 vaccines from intellectual property rights will not speed up production or distribution of the jabs, a pharmaceutical industry association said Tuesday.

Metal fatigue has emerged as chief suspect in last week's spectacular engine failure on a United Airlines plane, which scattered debris over suburban Denver and led to dozens of Boeing 777 aircraft being grounded worldwide.

The World Trade Organization agreed Monday to establish a dispute resolution panel on the new U.S. rule that all goods imported from Hong Kong must be stamped "Made in China".

European stock markets were in idle mode Monday as falling infection rates and upbeat vaccine news failed to allay nagging concerns over high share valuations and inflation.

Boeing confirmed Monday that dozens of its 777 aircraft were grounded worldwide, while Britain announced a temporary ban on those jets following a weekend scare involving a United Airlines plane in Colorado.