Gas prices are once again on the decline across the U.S., bringing some relief to drivers now paying a little less to fill up their tanks.

The national average for gas prices on Monday stood around $3.44, according to AAA. That's down about 9 cents from a week ago — marking the largest one-week drop recorded by the motor club so far in 2024. Monday's average was also more than 19 cents less than it was a month ago and over 14 cents below the level seen this time last year.

Derided as "Club Med" nations during the European debt crisis 15 years ago, the economies of Spain, Greece and Portugal are now outperforming their northern peers thanks to a rebound in tourism.

Oil giant Saudi Aramco said Sunday that international investors had snatched up the bulk of shares sold in its latest offering, which was set to raise $11.2 billion.

The secondary offering was expected to provide a short-term boost to Saudi Arabia's finances as the Gulf kingdom builds large-scale projects including resorts and stadiums, part of a reform drive to prepare for an eventual post-oil future.

The Japanese economy shrank at an annual rate of 1.8% in the first quarter of this year, slightly better than the initial estimate at a 2.0% contraction, according to revised government data Monday.

The revision was due to private sector investments, at minus 0.4%, up from the previous minus 0.5%.

World stocks were mostly lower on Monday after a U.S. jobs report released Friday came in hotter than expected, while the euro fell after French President Emmanuel Macron dissolved the National Assembly following a setback in Sunday's parliamentary election.

Far-right parties made major gains in parliamentary elections Sunday, leading French President Emmanuel Macron to call a snap election. This caused the euro to drop to its lowest price in nearly a month. The euro was trading at $1.0766, down from $1.0778.

They are called zombies, companies so laden with debt that they are just stumbling by on the brink of survival, barely able to pay even the interest on their loans and often just a bad business hit away from dying off for good.

An Associated Press analysis found their numbers have soared to nearly 7,000 publicly traded companies around the world — 2,000 in the United States alone — whiplashed by years of piling up cheap debt followed by stubborn inflation that has pushed borrowing costs to decade highs.

China's exports in May grew at their fastest pace in more than a year despite trade tensions, though imports fell short of analyst expectations, according to customs data released Friday.

Exports jumped 7.6% in May from the same month last year to $302.35 billion, rising at the fastest pace since April 2023. Imports rose by 1.8% to $219.73 billion, missing estimates of about 4% growth.

The European Central Bank plans to move ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve on Thursday in cutting interest rates, making the eurozone the biggest rich-world economy to start easing borrowing costs for businesses and consumers as the inflation that arose after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine slowly recedes.

ECB President Christine Lagarde and other officials have made it clear that a quarter-point rate cut from the current record high of 4% is more than likely when the bank's 26-member governing council meets at the institution's skyscraper headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.

Global markets rose Thursday after Wall Street barreled to records Wednesday as the frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology keeps sending stocks higher.

European markets opened higher as investors awaited a decision by the European Central Bank. It is expected to cut its key interest rate from a record high of 4% later in the day. France's CAC 40 rose 0.3% to 8,032.86, and Germany's DAX surged 1% to 18,758.43. Britain's FTSE 100 edged up 0.2% to 8,259.40.

Zara owner Inditex, the world's largest fashion retailer, on Wednesday reported a record net profit for the first quarter, even as the Spanish group faces growing competition from Chinese-founded online rival Shein.