Austria's foreign minister said Wednesday that the European Union wants to help Lebanon escape its economic meltdown, but only if the country's leaders clean up Beirut's affairs.

Alexander Schallenberg told reporters after meeting his Lebanese counterpart in Beirut that Lebanon should reach a deal with the International Monetary Fund, move forward with the investigation into the August 2020 port blast and restructure the hard-hit banking sector.

Mount Lebanon Attorney General Judge Ghada Aoun on Tuesday ordered General Security to impose a travel ban on Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh in connection with a lawsuit filed against him by activists.

A leaked copy of Aoun’s order says Salameh should be barred from traveling through all land, sea and air ports of entry due to “judicial requirements in light of the important clues and evidence in the preliminary investigation file, especially the lawsuit filed by the lawyers of the legal department of the People Want the Reform of the Regime group.”

The Beijing Winter Olympics are fraught with potential hazards for major sponsors, who are trying to remain quiet about China's human rights record while protecting at least $1 billion they've collectively paid to the IOC.

That could reach $2 billion when new figures are expected this year. Sponsors include big household names like Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Visa, Toyota, Airbnb, and Panasonic.

Cubans are no strangers to queuing for everything from bread to toothpaste, often standing for hours under a blazing sun with no access to a toilet or drinking water, and always with the fear of leaving empty-handed.

Europe's major equity markets rebounded Tuesday from recent falls, despite earlier Asian losses, as investors fished for bargain shares on the eve of key U.S. inflation data, dealers said.

China's automobiles sales grew for the first time since 2018 last year, a trade association said on Tuesday, as demand for new energy vehicles continues to rise.

Business in Lebanon's winter resorts is returning to normal after last year's complete lockdown due to the spread of COVID-19 that badly hurt winter tourism in the small country.

Skiers were seen running down the piste and children sliding down the hills at the Faraya-Mzaar ski resort, this weekend, despite the newly imposed restrictions and the financial crisis described by the World Bank as one of the worst in the world since the 1850s.

Video game publisher Take-Two announced Monday it has reached a deal with Zynga to acquire the mobile game developer, creator of the interactive hit Farmville, for $12.7 billion.

Strauss Zelnick, Take-Two's chairman and CEO, said in a statement that the acquisition would establish a "leadership position in mobile" for the company behind the Grand Theft Auto series.

Air France-KLM said Monday it would add a surcharge of up to 12 euros ($13,50) on its tickets to try to offset the cost of using more expensive sustainable aviation fuel.

Air France said that the fuel levy would be added to tickets from January 10.

Emerging economies should gird for possible rough times as the US Federal Reserve prepares to raise interest rates and world economic growth slows because of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, the IMF warned Monday.

The International Monetary Fund, which is scheduled to release updated economic forecasts on January 25, said that for now global economic recovery from the ravages of the pandemic should continue this year and next.