Airbus and Dassault Aviation announced Wednesday they intend to team up on the development of the future French-German combat fighter, a project Berlin and Paris unveiled last year.

The two firms "have decided to join forces for the development and production of Europe's Future Combat Air System," which is intended to enter service by 2040, they said in a joint statement released at the Berlin air show.

Britain's Lloyds Banking Group, bailed out by the government during the global financial crisis, on Wednesday logged strong first-quarter profits on the back of the "resilient" UK economy.

Solid sales of Coca-Cola's revamped diet cola offerings helped the soda giant score better-than-expected quarterly results on Tuesday.

The global music industry soared a record 8.1 percent last year as digital sales for the first time made up the majority of revenue thanks to the streaming boom, the industry said Tuesday. 

Recorded music grossed $17.3 billion in 2017 with digital music -- until last year roughly equal to physical sales worldwide -- amounting to 54 percent of the revenue, the IFPI global body said in its annual report.

Saudi Arabia said Tuesday it has completed the issuance of a new Islamic sukuk sale to help finance its budget deficit as the kingdom accelerates borrowing despite rising oil prices.

The dollar extended gains against its main peers and most other currencies Tuesday as rising US bond yields fan speculation of a sharp rise in interest rates, while most of Asia's major markets edged up after recent losses.

The U.S. Treasury on Monday said that it could lift sanctions on Russian aluminum giant Rusal if tycoon Oleg Deripaska gives up control of the company.

Stock markets mostly retreated on Monday, with weak eurozone data knocking the region's indices and the euro.

Qatar Airways will continue to expand even as it prepares to announce "large" annual losses due to a blockade by neighbors, the airline's chief executive said on Monday.

Iran banned the use of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies by banks and financial institutions on Monday amid ongoing debate over how best to regulate the technology.