In the Turkish city of Gaziantep, home to around half a million Syrians who fled the civil war south of the border, hundreds of Syrian businesses are thriving in a boost both for the displaced community and their host country.

Global oil supplies could be hit by the decision by the US to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal, and also by falling production in crisis-hit Venezuela, the IEA said on Wednesday.

Japan's economy slid into reverse for the first time in two years at the beginning of the year, hit by sluggish consumption and a winter cold snap, but analysts predicted the world's third-largest economy would quickly rebound.

Shanghai has granted BMW a license for self-driving car testing, setting up the German luxury brand to become the first foreign automaker to test autonomous vehicles on the road in China.

Preparatory work for the construction of a controversial Russian gas pipeline began off the German coast on Tuesday, said a consortium led by Russia's Gazprom, days ahead of a visit by German chancellor Angela Merkel to Russia.

The German economy grew slower than expected in the first three months of 2018, federal statistics authority Destatis said Tuesday, disappointing analysts' forecasts.

Asian markets fell on Tuesday as trade moves back into view with China and the US holding more high-level talks this week, while oil prices edged higher as tensions in the Middle East simmer.

Booming oil output in the United States -- which has threatened to derail other producers' efforts to drive up crude prices -- looks set to expand strongly again this year, OPEC said Monday.

Germany must take "more forceful" action to prepare its booming economy for the future by ramping up public investments, the International Monetary Fund said Monday, as calls mount for Berlin to reduce its oft-criticized trade surplus.

Banking giants HSBC and ING on Monday said they had carried out a landmark  blockchain transaction aimed at speeding up payment processes and making them more secure.