Thousands of minority Serbs in Kosovo on Monday protested a ban of the use of the Serbian currency in areas where they live, an issue that has been the cause of the latest crisis in relations between Serbia and Kosovo.

Tensions escalated after the government of Kosovo, a former Serbian province, banned banks and other financial institutions in the Serb-populated areas from using the dinar in local transactions, starting Feb. 1, and imposed the euro.

Just a quarter of business economists and analysts expect the United States to fall into recession this year. And any downturn would likely result from an external shock — such as a conflict involving China — rather than from domestic economic factors such as higher interest rates.

But respondents to a National Association of Business Economics survey released Monday still expect year-over-year inflation to exceed 2.5% — above the Federal Reserve's 2% target — through 2024.

Spanish farmers blocked roads across Spain on Thursday for the third day running to protest against heavy regulation and cheaper imports, with the country's main farmers' unions joining the demonstrations for the first time.

Several columns of slow-moving tractors took over roads to snarl traffic, particularly in the eastern region of Valencia, the northern region of Astoria and the central region of Castilla la Mancha.

Japanese automaker Honda's profit rose 3.5% in the October-December quarter from a year earlier on the back of solid demand in the U.S. and Europe and a recovery in its home market, the company said Thursday.

Tokyo-based Honda Motor Co.'s profit in the last quarter was 253.3 billion yen, or $1.7 billion. Quarterly sales jumped 21% to 5.39 trillion yen ($36 billion).

Nissan's profit sank in October-December to about half of what it earned the year before, the automaker said Thursday, though it stuck to its earlier earnings forecasts.

Nissan Motor Co., based in the port city of Yokohama, reported its profit was 29 billion yen ($195 million) in the last quarter, down from 50.6 billion yen a year earlier.

The work to tame inflation in Turkey — namely through interest rate hikes — will continue "with determination," the country's new central bank chief said Thursday, offering some certainty about efforts to right the battered economy following his predecessor's surprise resignation.

Speaking for the first time since taking the helm of the central bank on Saturday, Fatih Karahan, a former senior Goldman Sachs executive, said he expects inflation to drop considerably over this year and next.

The economic losses in south Lebanon have reached around $1.2 billion since the beginning of the Israel-Hezbollah clashes on October 8, a study has found.

From Flamin' Hot Cheetos to Sweet Heat Starburst, America's snacks are getting spicier. Now, Coca-Cola wants in on the trend.

On Wednesday, the Atlanta beverage giant introduced Coca-Cola Spiced, the first new permanent offering to its North American portfolio in three years. Coca-Cola Spiced and Coca-Cola Spiced Zero Sugar will go on sale in the U.S. and Canada on Feb. 19.

Chinese and U.S. officials have met in Beijing for talks on tough issues dividing the two largest economies, as trade and tariffs increasingly draw attention in the runup to the U.S. presidential election.

China's Ministry of Finance said Beijing raised objections to higher tariffs on Chinese exports, two-way investment restrictions and other limits on trade and technology during the talks by the countries' Economic Working Group. In a statement, it characterized the Monday-Tuesday talks as "constructive."

Missiles and drones are flying in the Red Sea, disrupting one of the world's key trade arteries and a chokepoint for energy shipments headed for Europe.

Attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels over Israel's war with Hamas are posing a new threat to the future of energy supplies to the 27-country European Union, which relies on imported natural gas to power factories, generate electricity and heat homes.