Two of China's biggest banks on Wednesday announced slight increases in 2015 net profits, but warned of growing risks from bad loans as the world's second largest economy slows. 

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) eked out a 0.48 percent rise in net profit to 277.13 billion yuan ($43 billion), it said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange where it is listed.

If Britain exits the European Union it will have a negative impact on the British, European and world economies, US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew warned Tuesday.

Britons are set to vote in a crucial referendum on June 23 to decide whether to back a so-called Brexit -- or exit from the European Union.

The dollar extended its losses in Asia on Wednesday after Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen stuck to a dovish stance on monetary policy, citing ongoing concerns about the global economy.

Yellen signaled U.S. interest rates were unlikely to rise before June, and that when the central bank does tighten policy, it will be slow and gradual. 

Britain's defense minister said on Tuesday that a deal to sell Eurofighter Typhoon warplanes to Qatar was "definitely still on the table."

Chinese President Xi Jinping signed a landmark strategic partnership with his Czech counterpart in Prague on Tuesday amid a fresh wave of protests in the Czech capital against Beijing's policies on Tibet.

Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have reached a deal to resume production at the disputed Khafji offshore oilfield, Kuwait's acting oil minister said on Tuesday.

"An agreement has been reached with the Saudi side at Aramco to resume production at Khafji field in small quantities," Anas al-Saleh told parliament during a debate.

Visitor numbers to Turkey plunged by over 10 percent in February, the government said Tuesday, as tourism was hit by a crisis in relations with Russia and security fears after a series of attacks.

The number of foreigners entering Turkey fell 10.32 percent in February from the same period the year earlier, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism said in its latest monthly statistics.

Israel's parliament has passed a law capping the annual salaries of bank executives at $658,000, described as among the world's toughest such restrictions.

The law, passed by the Knesset late Monday, says no salary in the financial sector can be more than 35 times that of the lowest-paid worker in the same company, with a ceiling of 2.5 million shekels ($658,000, 584,000 euros).

Growth of loans to the private sector in the euro area picked up modestly in February, European Central Bank data showed on Tuesday. 

For the ECB, the statistics are a key indicator of the economic health of the single currency area, as borrowing is a main financing source for corporate investment which in turn should boost the eurozone's currently weak economy.

Asian investors moved cautiously Tuesday as they returned to the trading floors after the long Easter break, with attention turning to a speech by Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen later in the day.

After a broadly upbeat month across all asset classes -- which saw healthy gains after the sharp sell-offs of January and February -- investors also looked to cash in before closing their positions before the end of the week.