IMF chief Christine Lagarde on Friday joined a  Cameroon summit of central African leaders aimed at tackling economic woes brought on by weak oil prices.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that the economy was set to shrink slightly this year, but by far less than in 2015, as the country struggles out of a two-year recession.

Credit Suisse said Friday it had reached an agreement with US authorities to pay almost $5.3 billion to settle disputes over the sale of mortgage-backed securities.

German consumers are looking ahead to the new year with optimism, a leading survey said Friday, though it warned that the impact of this week's deadly Berlin attack had yet to be taken into account.

The poll of around 2,000 people, carried out by market research firm GfK, found that consumer morale in Europe's top economy rose for a third consecutive month in December.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced Thursday that his focus is to restore confidence and hope in Lebanon, promising the Lebanese and investors a twenty-fold increase in internet speed.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cabinet on Thursday approved Japan's biggest annual defence budget in the face of North Korea's nuclear and missile threats and a territorial row with China.

OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia on Thursday projected another budget deficit in 2017 but reported a less-than-expected shortfall for this year after cutbacks in the face of lower oil prices.

It is the first budget since the kingdom, aiming for a balanced budget by 2020, announced a wide-ranging plan to wean the economy off its oil dependency.

The Dubai government in the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday announced its 2017 budget foreseeing a deficit of 2.5 billion dirhams ($681 million, 652 million euros) and 3 percent expenditure increase.

Protesters who shut off two Libyan oil pipelines, one for more than two years, have lifted their blockade, paving the way for a production boost, the National Petroleum Company said.

The European Union on Wednesday proposed tighter checks on cash and gold transfers as part of a crackdown on terrorist financing across a bloc grappling with a wave of terrorism.