Britain's annual inflation rate slowed sharply to zero in February for the first time, pulled down by falling prices for recreational goods, food, furniture and oil, official data showed Tuesday.

"The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) was unchanged in the year to February 2015, that is, a 12-month rate of 0.0 percent, down from 0.3 percent in January," the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.

Greece and the European Union could reach a deal as early as this week to allow the release of badly needed aid funds for Athens, European Parliament President Martin Schulz said Tuesday.

"In my opinion, by the end of the week we will reach a new understanding that will be enough to unblock the most urgent funds," Schulz said in an interview published in Italy's La Repubblica newspaper.

Oil prices fell in Asia Tuesday following disappointing manufacturing data out of top energy consumer China, and as dealers await fresh U.S. economic figures, analysts said. 

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate eased 58 cents to $46.87 while Brent fell 35 cents to $55.57 in afternoon trade. 

U.S. off-roaders seeking to rev up the four-wheel drive of a Jeep might soon find out that their American icon is made in Italy.

In a sign of what comes with the takeover of Chrysler by Italian giant Fiat, U.S. auto dealers have begun selling the Italian-made Jeep Renegade.

China's manufacturing activity contracted in March at its fastest rate in almost a year, HSBC said Tuesday, suggesting worsening conditions in the world's second-largest economy and putting pressure on leaders to further ease monetary policy.

The British bank's preliminary purchasing managers index (PMI) came in at 49.2, it said in a statement, below the breakeven point of 50 and the weakest reading since last April, when it hit 48.1.

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan Monday agreed a preliminary deal on a controversial dam project that Cairo feared would reduce its share of vital waters from the Nile.

The leaders of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan all gathered in Khartoum to sign the agreement of principles on Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam project.

Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has warned German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a letter that Athens will not be able to service its debt without financial help from the EU, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

The newspaper said it has a copy of a letter dated March 15 in which Tsipras "warns that his government will be forced to choose between paying off loans, owed primarily to the International Monetary Fund, or continue social spending." 

Albino Gomes looks despairingly at his two-hectare lettuce farm north of Lisbon and wonders where he is going to find money for fertilizers this year.

He had put his savings into what he was told was a "risk-free investment with guaranteed returns" at Banco Espirito Santo, one of Portugal's biggest banks.

The euro inched lower Monday ahead of more talks aimed at solving Greece's debt crisis, as investors eye a slate of speeches by Federal Reserve officials for further clues about the timing of an interest rate hike.

The single currency eased to $1.0813 and 129.69 yen on Monday from $1.0821 and 129.98 yen in New York on Friday.

Oil producers outside OPEC must cooperate to boost falling crude prices as the cartel refuses to take responsibility alone, Saudi Arabia's oil minister has said.

"We refuse to take responsibility alone because (OPEC) produces 30 percent of market output and 70 percent comes from outside," Ali al-Naimi said in remarks carried Monday by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).