New-car sales in the UK surpassed 2 million last year for the first time since the pandemic, buoyed in part by automakers offering more than £5 billion ($6.7 billion) worth of discounts on electric vehicles. 

British company executives became a little more optimistic following finance minister Rachel Reeves' budget and grew more willing to increase investment, although the mood overall stayed muted, a survey showed on Tuesday.

Most Asian stock markets extended sharp gains on Tuesday, with Japanese shares hitting fresh record highs as technology and chipmaking stocks continued to rally, while South Korean equities edged lower from peaks ahead of Samsung earnings later this week.

U.S. multinational corporations will be exempted from paying more corporate taxes overseas in a deal finalized by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

U.S. manufacturing activity slumped to a 14-month low in December, with new orders contracting further and input costs grinding higher as the sector continued to bear the imprint of President Donald Trump's import tariffs.