Consumer confidence in Germany is at its highest since late 2001, as rising optimism about the economy and income expectations persuade German shoppers to open their wallets, a poll found on Thursday.

"The escalation of the situation in east Ukraine, the ongoing tensions between the West and Russia and events in Greece are not leaving much of an impression on German consumers, who are increasingly optimistic," market research company GfK said in a statement.

The Lebanon Industry Value Chain Development (LIVCD) project, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), organized a closing workshop of the Mechanical Harvesting Program within the Olive Oil Value Chain.

The goal of the Mechanical Harvesting Program was to improve olive oil productivity at the orchard level, and decrease harvest and production costs for 1,000 olive oil producers across Lebanon.

International ratings agency Moody's said Tuesday it had downgraded all ratings for scandal-plagued Brazilian oil giant Petrobras.

Until recently, Petrobras had been considered one of the best and most prestigious businesses in Brazil. But Moody's dropped its unsecured debt rating from Baa3 to Ba2.

The hard work for Greece's new anti-austerity government began Wednesday of living up to promises made not only to international creditors but also to voters expecting relief from years of painful cuts.

On Tuesday Athens secured -- but only just -- a four-month extension to its lifeline bailout programme, although the German and Greek parliaments still have to give the green light.

Russia is seeking backing from Abu Dhabi investors to build a giant airport in Cuba seen as an international gateway to Latin America, a report said Wednesday.

Talks on the proposal have been held between Moscow and Abu Dhabi state investment fund Mubadala, The National newspaper reported citing Russian Industry Minister Denis Manturov.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government unveils its first full budget Saturday under intense pressure to bring about promised reforms to grow India's economy after winning the biggest mandate in 30 years at last year's elections.

Modi has promised to slash red tape, reform tax and overhaul land acquisition laws to try to attract foreign investment and create jobs for millions of young people. 

Chinese factory activity expanded in February, snapping two consecutive months of contraction, a closely watched private survey showed Wednesday in a bright spot amid a broad slowdown in the world's second-largest economy.

British banking giant HSBC said its preliminary purchasing managers' index (PMI) reading for this month came in at a four-month high of 50.1, up from 49.7 in January.

Russia's ruble and stock market showed renewed weakness Tuesday in response to another slide in the price of oil and a downgrade to "junk" status of its sovereign debt by Moody's.

The global rating agency announced after trading in Moscow finished on Friday that it expected Russia to experience a "deep recession" this year and continued economic contraction in 2016.

The United States is probing major banks over possible manipulation of precious metals markets, the Wall Street Journal said Monday. 

The investigation centers on prices for gold, silver, platinum and palladium.

Germany's public finances were back in the black in 2014, as growth in Europe's biggest economy shifted up a gear at the end of the year, official data showed Tuesday.

The combined budgets of the German government, regional states, municipal authorities and welfare system showed an overall surplus of 18 billion euros ($20.4 billion) last year, the federal statistics office Destatis calculated in a statement.