China's manufacturing activity contracted sharply in December for the third month in a row, according to official figures released Saturday, despite Beijing's loosening of Covid restrictions at the beginning of the month.

Peru's Constitutional Court has ordered the demolition of a wall that separates a rich neighborhood of Lima from a poor one, ruling it "discriminatory." 

Stock markets mostly rose in Europe and the United States but sank in Asia on Thursday as investors weighed the economic impact of China's Covid surge as the country reopens.

The head of Gazprom said Wednesday the Russian gas giant had a challenging year, as the company seeks new markets following international sanctions over Moscow's Ukraine offensive.

Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh on Wednesday said citizens can head to any AMBank branch to carry out Sayrafa currency exchanges at the LBP 38,000 rate should their bank refuse to conduct the transaction.

“The aforementioned bank has agreed to carry out these operations,” Salameh added, in a statement.

European investigators will visit Lebanon next month as part of a probe into the wealth of Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh, a judicial official said.

The long-serving central bank chief, 72, is among top officials widely blamed for Lebanon's unprecedented economic crisis, dubbed one of the worst in modern global history by the World Bank.

A bitter cold descends on snow-topped terraced houses in north London, as Samantha Pierre-Joseph warms her living room with a small whirring fan heater. 

Iraq's premier summoned the central bank governor Tuesday amid worries sparked by a currency drop against the dollar, with lawmakers calling for an extraordinary session of parliament.

World shares advanced Tuesday after China announced it would relax more of its pandemic restrictions despite widespread outbreaks of COVID-19 that are straining its medical systems and disrupting business.

China's National Health Commission said Monday that passengers arriving from abroad will no longer have to observe a quarantine, starting Jan. 8. They will still need a negative virus test within 48 hours of their departure and to wear masks on their flights.

Companies welcomed China's decision to end quarantines for travelers from abroad as an important step to revive slumping business activity while Japan on Tuesday announced restrictions on visitors from the country as infections surge.

The ruling Communist Party's abrupt decision to lift some of the world's strictest anti-virus controls comes as it tries reverse an economic downturn. It has ended curbs that confined millions of people to their homes and sparked protests, but hospitals have been flooded with feverish, wheezing patients as the virus spreads.