Jordan said on Monday it will raise electricity prices this week by between nine and 17 percent to offset losses caused by cut-offs in Egyptian gas supplies.

"An increase between nine to 17 percent will be imposed from Wednesday on consumers who use more 600 kilowatt/hour per month," said the Electricity Regulatory Commission.

The National Iranian Oil Company has no firm projection of the impact on world crude prices of a looming EU embargo on Iranian exports, its managing director said in comments published on Saturday.

Ahmad Qalebani told the government newspaper Iran that the size of any hike in prices would depend on the European Union's success in finding alternative output to make up for Iranian deliveries lost to the market.

Cyprus' Finance Ministry says it's confident that the island's banks will be able to recapitalize on their own and won't need government support.

The ministry says Cyprus' economy has "strong foundations" and adds that it will soon unveil a growth-oriented package of measures that it's preparing in partnership with the private sector.

Europe is getting tougher on government debt. After more than two years struggling to rescue financially shaky governments, leaders of the 17 countries that use the euro are ready to agree on a treaty that will force member countries to put deficit limits into their national laws.

At first glance, it seems logical — after all, the crisis erupted after too many governments spent and borrowed too much for too long.

A raft of Western economic sanctions on Iran over its controversial nuclear program are increasingly stifling the lives of ordinary Iranians, hit by rising inflation and growing isolation.

EU and U.S. banking sanctions put in place 18 months ago, and reinforced on Monday, have fuelled Iran's runaway inflation and triggered a collapse in the value of the rial, with implications for the country's residents and diaspora.

Crude prices were steady Friday amid a sliding U.S. dollar and expectations that Europe will be able to find oil elsewhere if Iran makes good on its threat to immediately halt exports to the region.

Benchmark crude for March delivery was up 6 cents at $99.76 a barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 30 cents to finish at $99.70 per barrel on the Nymex on Thursday.

Nearly three-quarters of Germans oppose putting more money into the eurozone's rescue fund, according to a new poll.

The International Monetary Fund is among those advocating an increase in the €500 billion ($650 billion) European Stability Mechanism, which is to start work in July. Chancellor Angela Merkel is already holding out against the idea.

Europe's financial chiefs tried Friday to soothe the fears of global chief executives and other political leaders, insisting they have a handle on the eurozone's troubles.

European Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said Friday he hopes a Greek debt restructuring deal would be reached "if not today maybe by the weekend."

Abu Dhabi-owned carrier Etihad Airways said on Thursday it has ordered two more Airbus A330-200Fs in a deal worth $423 million at list prices.

"We are strongly committed to building our presence in the cargo sector with the platform of Abu Dhabi as our hub to connect global trade lanes," Etihad Airways chief James Hogan said in a statement.

The central bank of sanctions-hit Iran is to enforce a single exchange rate after a dramatic slide in the value of the Iranian rial on the open market, state television reported on Thursday.

"From Saturday, there will be a single fixed rate for the dollar which will be 12,260 rials," central bank governor Mahmoud Bahmani announced on television.