IBT Staff Reporter

China is fighting nascent COVID-19 flare-ups across the country with mass testing and fresh restrictions, including in weary Shanghai where new cases have been linked to a building which houses a karaoke lounge that was operating illegally.

As once relatively wealthy Sri Lanka suffers a dire economic crisis with shortages of everything from medicines to gas, people are returning to cooking with firewood.

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An outbreak of foot and mouth disease in Indonesia threatens to disrupt a ritual of slaughtering animals to mark the festival of Eid al-Adha this year, with livestock traders in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation bemoaning low sales.

New Zealand Defence Force said on Wednesday it had flown a team of civilian doctors, nurses and defence force personnel along with personal protective gear to tiny pacific island Niue to help with the country's COVID-19 outbreak.

U.S. stocks and oil looked to hold steady after steeper losses earlier in the week, as investors processed recession fears and awaited new policy hints from the Federal Reserve.

Tentative calm returned to global markets on Wednesday, with the recession-obsessed euro slumped at a two-decade low, stocks inching higher and oil back above $100 a barrel following a near 10% plunge a day earlier.

Tentative calm returned to global markets on Wednesday, with the euro steadying after dropping to a two-decade low and oil back above $100 a barrel following a near 10% plunge a day earlier.

Asian stocks fell and the dollar stood by a two-decade high on the euro on Wednesday as investors' fears deepened that the continent is leading the world into recession, while oil and European equity futures made a wobbly attempt to steady.

Asian stocks slipped and the dollar stood by a two-decade high on the euro on Wednesday as investors' fears deepened that the continent is leading the world into recession, while oil and European equity futures attempted to steady after a slide.

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Ukraine has so far staved off any major Russian advance into the north of its Donetsk region, but pressure is intensifying with heavy shelling on the city of Sloviansk and nearby populated areas, the Ukrainian military said on Wednesday.

Ukraine has so far staved off any major Russian advance into the north of its Donetsk region, but pressure is intensifying with heavy shelling, missile and rocket fire on the city of Sloviansk and nearby populated areas, Kyiv's military said on Wednesday.

Ukraine has so far thwarted an attempted Russian advance into the north of its Donetsk region, but the city of Sloviansk and other populated areas there were being pounded by artillery and missiles, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday.

Ukraine has so far thwarted an attempted Russian advance into the north of its Donetsk region but the city of Sloviansk and other civilian areas are being heavily shelled, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday.

Ukrainian defenders fought desperately to withstand a major Russian offensive in the Donetsk region, with the enemy laying down heavy artillery fire to pave the way for ground forces to advance, a senior Ukrainian official said on Wednesday.

Russian troops are engaged in heavy fighting supported by widespread artillery fire as they launch a major offensive for Ukraine's Donetsk region, Ukrainian officials said, a day after Moscow declared victory in the neighbouring province of Luhansk.

The dollar rose to fresh 20-year highs on Wednesday and the euro tumbled to a new two-decade low as rising energy prices cast a long shadow over the euro zone's economy but bolstered the U.S.

The euro tumbled to a new two-decade low on Wednesday as fears over rising energy prices and potential shortages cast a long shadow over the bloc's economy, while demand for safe-haven assets drove the dollar to fresh 20-year highs.

The euro edged to a fresh two-decade low against the dollar on Wednesday as fears over rising energy prices and potential shortages cast a long shadow over the bloc's economy despite some reassuring headlines about gas supplies.

The euro was just off its lowest in almost two decades against the dollar as concerns about the impact of surging energy prices on the euro zone economy continued to weigh.

The dollar stood tall on Wednesday, holding at a 20-year peak against the euro and multi-month highs against other major peers as higher gas prices and political uncertainty renewed recession fears and sent investors scrambling to the safe-haven currency.

The dollar stood tall on Wednesday, holding at a 20-year peak against the euro and multi-month highs against other major peers as higher gas prices and political uncertainty renewed recession fears and sent investors scrambling to the safe-haven currency.

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Gold extended its selloff to an over nine-month low on Wednesday hurt by a stronger dollar, while the Federal Reserve's June meeting minutes established a more "restrictive" monetary policy.

Gold prices staged a slight recovery on Wednesday as some investors resorted to bargain hunting after a more than 2% fall in the previous session, while focus was also on minutes of the U.S.