The shares of Russia's two biggest banks soared on Monday after avoiding being delisted from a top emerging markets index as part of the West's response to the Kremlin's stance in Ukraine.

Venezuela's nighttime border closure, a move meant to combat smuggling, will be costly, Colombia's transport industry said Sunday.

Asian markets opened up Monday following widespread falls last week as investors took heart from Wall Street shrugging off fears over instability in Iraq and Ukraine.

At a glitzy show stall for a new residential development in Hong Kong, property agents with loudspeakers are promoting the latest trend in the overcrowded city -- high-end "micro-flats" which still come with an eye-watering price tag.

India's top crime fighting body is investigating a $155 million loan by a state-run bank to debt-ridden Kingfisher Airlines, a police official said Sunday.

Excellent IT and language skills have helped Bulgaria's outsourcing sector boom, raising hopes that it could prop up the badly stagnating economy of the EU's poorest country.

Israeli bombardment has left parts of Gaza in ruins, and the enclave's already shattered economy is also feeling the pinch as prices for staple foods have started to climb.

The market in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp was bustling Saturday, but many of the camp's hard-up residents are buying less.

The International Monetary Fund said Friday it is ready to aid Ghana after the country formally requested assistance to surmount fiscal and economic challenges.

The global crisis lender gave no information on how much money the Ghanaian authorities are requesting to bridge a deep financing gap that has resulted in a plunge in its currency.

Rating agency Fitch cut Croatia's credit grade by one notch Friday, after the government said it could miss its budget deficit target this year.

Fitch cut the rating to "BB" from "BB+", with a stable outlook.

China's annual inflation rose 2.3 percent in July, official data showed Saturday, remaining stable and allowing authorities space to further stimulate growth in the world's second-largest economy if needed.

The country's consumer price index (CPI) -- a main gauge of inflation -- also rose by 2.3 percent in the first seven months of the year from the same period in 2013, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement.