The debt burden of the 17 countries that use the euro rose to 90 percent of the value of its economy at the end of the second quarter, in spite of efforts by many of the countries to cut back on their spending.

The rise reported Wednesday by Eurostat, the EU's statistics office, from the previous quarter's 88.2 percent provides further evidence that stalling economic growth is making it harder for eurozone countries to handle their debts.

French auto group PSA Peugeot Citroen reported weak sales and rising debt, and waived dividends in return for state support on Wednesday, causing its shares to slump 7.48 percent.

The group, the second-biggest auto maker in Europe behind booming German group Volkswagen, has already announced 8,000 job cuts and a plant closure which the government wants pruned back.

Quality of life for Canadians has dropped significantly since the last recession in 2008, even though indicators show a rebound in the economy, said a study published Tuesday.

Canadians' well-being, according to the Canadian Index of Wellbeing composite report, dropped by 24 percent between 2008 and 2010 and the decline continues despite an economic recovery.

China's manufacturing sector showed signs of recovery on Wednesday as an HSBC survey provided fresh evidence that the worst may be over for the world's number two economy.

The preliminary purchasing mangers' index (PMI) released by the British banking giant hit 49.1 this month, the highest level in three months and up from 47.9 in September. A reading above 50 indicates growth.

With massive steel Sidra trees sprouting from the base of the building and a 9-meter (yard) high sculpture of a spider in the lobby protecting a sack of grey and white eggs, Qatar National Convention Center is hard to ignore.

But it's what most visitors don't see that may become the building's lasting legacy in a region far better known for over-the-top excesses than conservation.

Chinese ratings agency Dagong said Tuesday it was tying up with U.S. and Russian partners to form a new "independent" group to rival U.S.-based agencies it claims have "proven inadequate".

The Chinese firm will set up the joint venture with Egan-Jones Ratings Co. (EJR), based in Pennsylvania, and Russia's RusRating JSC, it said in an invitation for a press conference Wednesday to unveil the new company.

Toyota Motor is cutting its target of producing more than 10 million vehicles this year after suffering a sales drop in key market China amid strained Sino-Japanese ties, a report said Tuesday.

Japan's biggest automaker had aimed to top the 10-million mark in what would have been a first for the company, saying earlier this year that it expected global output to hit 10.05 million vehicles in 2012.

Singapore has opened a new cruise terminal capable of berthing the world's biggest luxury liners, in a bid to boost the city-state's position as a regional travel hub.

The Marina Bay Cruise Center Singapore was opened late Monday with company officials saying it will allow the island-state to tap the growing number of people in Asia taking leisure trips on luxury vessels.

Australia on Monday cut its growth and budget surplus forecasts as worsening global conditions hurt revenues in the mining-driven economy.

In a mid-year economic review, Treasurer Wayne Swan said real GDP growth was forecast at 3.0 percent this fiscal year -- from 3.25 percent predicted in May -- while the surplus will shrink to Aus$1.1 billion (U.S.$1.13 billion).

Germany is planning to warn Britain that an upcoming European summit may be canceled if London insists on vetoing any deal that does not freeze EU spending, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is trying to persuade her British counterpart, Prime Minister David Cameron, to support a compromise capping European Union spending at 1.0 percent of European gross domestic product, the newspaper reported without revealing its sources.