A senior Chinese central bank official suggested on Tuesday that the bank's buying and selling of treasury bonds in the secondary market could be used for liquidity management and as a monetary policy tool.

Japan's annual business-to-business service inflation accelerated for the second month to hit 2.3% in March, data showed on Wednesday, suggesting firms continued to pass on rising labour costs thanks to prospects for sustained wage gains.

The dollar nursed its wounds on Wednesday following big tumbles against the euro and sterling, but the yen remained mired near 34-year lows even as Japanese officials stepped up intervention warnings.

U.S. business activity cooled in April to a four-month low due to weaker demand, while rates of inflation eased slightly even as input prices rose sharply, suggesting some possible relief ahead as the Federal Reserve looks for signs that the economy is ebbing enough to bring inflation down further.

Electric car sales will rise strongly in 2024 and increasingly undercut oil demand, the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecast on Tuesday, adding affordability and charging infrastructure would be key to future growth.

Overall business activity in the euro zone expanded at its fastest pace in nearly a year this month as a buoyant recovery in the bloc's dominant service industry more than offset a deeper downturn in manufacturing, a survey found.