Britain's Treasury chief is to announce a hike in the national minimum wage on Monday, as the governing Conservative Party tries to persuade voters it is on the side of those who are struggling financially.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt has ruled out tax cuts, saying they would fuel inflation.

Shares were mostly lower in Europe and Asia on Monday even after the U.S. Congress averted a U.S. government shutdown with a last-minute compromise.

Markets in China are closed for a weeklong holiday. Markets in India and South Korea also were closed.

The Finance and Budget Parliamentary Committee convened Monday to discuss the legality of the government's spendings from the $1.139 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) disbursed by the International Monetary Fund.

The committee's head, MP Ibrahim Kanaan, said after the meeting that the committee has decided to refer the SDR file to the Audit Bureau, accusing the government of spending illegally from the SDR without the parliament's approval and supervision.

The Emirati president-designate of the upcoming United Nations COP28 climate talks called on oil and gas companies on Monday to be "central to the solution" to fighting climate change, even as the industry boosts its production to enjoy rising global energy prices.

The call by Sultan al-Jaber highlights the gap between climate activists suspicious of his industry ties and his calls to drastically slash the world's emissions by nearly half in seven years to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) compared with pre-industrial times.

The U.S. government on Saturday was hours from shutting down after the far right of the Republican Party scuppered final attempts at a temporary budget agreement, throwing into doubt everything from access to national parks to Washington's massive support for Ukraine.

Many millions of Chinese tourists are expected to travel within their country, splurging on hotels, tours, attractions and meals in a boost to the economy during the 8-day autumn holiday period that began Friday.

This year's holiday began with the Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday and also includes the Oct. 1 National Day. The public holidays end on Oct. 6.

Shares advanced in Europe on Friday after a day of mixed and sparse trading in Asia, where many markets were closed for public holidays.

Oil prices edged higher and U.S. futures advanced.

Inflation that has been plaguing Europeans declined sharply in September, strengthening hopes that consumers will eventually get relief from costlier groceries, vacations and haircuts — and that the European Central Bank won't have to further restrict the economy by raising interest rates from already-record highs.

The annual rate was 4.3% this month, a drop from 5.2% in August. But recently higher oil prices are casting a shadow over prospects for quickly beating inflation down to the central bank's target of 2%.

The central banks of the United Arab Emirates and Egypt have agreed to a currency exchange deal, which could bolster the struggling Egyptian economy.

A joint news release said the agreement would allow the two central banks to exchange up to 5 billion Emirati dirhams and 42 billion Egyptian pounds, or roughly the equivalent of $1.36 billion.

Germany and Israel have signed an agreement for Berlin to buy the sophisticated Arrow 3 missile defense system, designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles. The development is the latest step in Berlin's bid to strengthen its air defenses following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Germany aims to integrate the system into wider NATO air defense efforts. Last year, Berlin launched the European Sky Shield Initiative, which now includes 19 countries.