Facebook on Wednesday reported that its quarterly profit surged as its ranks of monthly users closed in on two billion, but warned of rising expenses and slowing revenue growth.

The leading social network said it made a profit of $3.06 billion on $8.03 billion in revenue in the first three months of this year, posting increases of 76 percent and 49 percent, respectively, compared to the same period last year.

Apple reported a rise in quarterly profits Tuesday, but its shares took a hit from weaker iPhone sales ahead of a 10-year-anniversary model on the horizon.

Apple said its profit climbed 4.9 percent to slightly more than $11 billion on revenue rising 4.6 percent to $52.9 billion in the quarterly period that ended April 1.

China is expected within days to carry out the maiden test flight of a home-grown passenger jet built to meet soaring Chinese travel demand and challenge the dominance of Boeing and Airbus.

Twitter is launching a 24-hour streaming news channel in partnership with the Bloomberg Media, in a major expansion of the social media firm's video operations, the two firms announced Monday.

The new streaming channel "will combine the vast global editorial and newsgathering capabilities of Bloomberg with the digital power of Twitter," a joint statement.

Lebanese Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh said in a word he delivered on Tuesday at the Arab Economic Forum that the Lebanese pound would remain the country's pillar of trust, economic growth, and social stability, the National News Agency reported.

Salameh's words came in an address he gave during the 2017 Arab Economic Forum's meeting, NNA added.

Most Asian markets advanced Tuesday as regional investors returned  from a long holiday weekend, with eyes now on a Federal Reserve meeting and the release of US jobs data later in the week.

Another record close on Wall Street's Nasdaq index provided some early buying impetus, while there was also relief that lawmakers in Washington had finally hammered out a deal to avoid a costly shutdown of the US economy.

The operator of Sydney's main airport Tuesday ruled out involvement in building a second major airport for the city, citing financial risks, leaving the Australian government to develop the project.

Greece has reached a preliminary deal with its creditors that should pave the way for long-awaited debt relief talks, the Greek finance minister said Tuesday.

Tokyo shares rose Monday as investors cheered the yen's weakness as well as a deal on the U.S. budget which, if approved, will avert a government shutdown.

French shoppers would be paying for their baguettes in francs within a year if far-right candidate Marine Le Pen wins the presidential election next weekend, her Front National (FN) party's deputy leader said Monday.