The megaship which blocked Egypt's Suez Canal and crippled world trade for nearly a week has been "seized" on court orders until the vessel's owners pay $900 million, canal authorities said Tuesday.

The Syrian president on Tuesday dismissed central bank governor Hazem Karfoul whose three-year tenure coincided with a severe economic crisis.

Asian and European stocks markets mostly rose Tuesday, as investors geared up for vital US inflation data and earnings, while bitcoin powered to a record peak on the eve of a key IPO.

Britain's economy rebounded slightly in February despite coronavirus curbs while exports of goods to the European Union recovered a bit more, data showed Tuesday, sparking optimism over the outlook.

The cryptocurrency market has grown exponentially in 2021 and is now worth a staggering $2.0 trillion as it increasingly attracts interest from big names on Wall Street.

The U.S. government posted a record deficit in the six months ended in March, a 130 percent surge reflecting the impact of pandemic stimulus spending, the Treasury Department said Monday.

U.S. President Joe Biden holds a rare meeting Monday with opposition Republican lawmakers, as well as Democratic allies, to push his more than $2 trillion infrastructure bill -- a daring bid to rebuild the United States and cement his place in history.

The White House meeting between Biden and eight members of Congress is being stage managed to show that the new president has made good on his promise to end the divisiveness that turned Washington into a permanent dog fight under Donald Trump.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday welcomed a last-minute agreement ending a trade dispute between two South Korean electric-vehicle battery makers that he said represented "a win for American workers and the American auto industry." 

The deal between industrial giants SK Innovation and LG Energy Solution was also seen as a victory for Biden as he presses for a quick embrace of electric vehicles as a key element in combating climate change. 

The economies of "early inoculating" countries in the Middle East and North Africa will bounce back to pre-pandemic levels next year, the IMF said Sunday, after raising its 2021 MENA growth forecast.

The region, which includes the Arab countries and Iran, saw its real GDP growth shrink by 3.4 percent in 2020 due to lower oil prices and sweeping lockdowns to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Energy giant Saudi Aramco said it has struck a 12.4-billion-dollar deal to sell a minority stake in a newly formed oil pipeline business to a consortium led by US-based EIG Global Energy Partners.