Plunging oil prices sparked a drop of almost 40 percent in new well permits issued across the United States in November, in a sudden pause in the growth of the U.S. shale oil and gas boom that started around 2007.

Heavy discounting failed to stop euro zone business activity growing less than thought last month, a survey showed on Wednesday, suggesting the bloc's economy may contract again early next year.

Brent rose to $71 a barrel on Wednesday, recovering some of its losses from the previous session as a turbulent market searched for a price floor after a nearly 40 percent fall since June.

Japan's auto recall enforcement division, whose 16 members work from a cramped office on the eighth floor of the transport ministry building in Tokyo, only found out about safety issues with Takata Corp air bags in late-2008 - more than three years after the company says it first learned of problems.

Canadian buyout firm Onex Corp (OCX.TO) is in talks to buy a UK safety and survival equipment maker from Warburg Pincus LLC [WP.UL] for about 450 million pounds ($704 million), Bloomberg reported, citing three people with knowledge of the discussions.

China's Shanghai Electric Power (600021.SS) said on Wednesday it was in preliminary contact with top German utility E.ON (EONGn.DE) over the possible purchase of its Italian assets.

Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L) has sold a 1.6-billion-pound ($2.50 billion) portfolio of Irish mortgages to Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and CarVal, a private equity group, the Financial Times newspaper reported.

IBM is enjoying a wave of major technology outsourcing deals from European customers in the fourth quarter and the new contract signings are not over yet, an executive for the computer services giant said in an interview.

A key House panel has delayed a hearing on the Federal Communications Commission's efforts to write new Internet traffic rules aimed at assuring "net neutrality."

Eight days after a massive cyber attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, the Hollywood studio was still struggling to restore some systems on Tuesday evening as investigators combed for evidence to identify the culprit.

China's services sector grew slightly faster in November, two surveys showed on Wednesday, a welcome respite to a run of underwhelming data but still unlikely to allay concerns about the softening Chinese economy.

Iranian hackers have infiltrated some of the world's top energy, transport and infrastructure companies over the past two years in a campaign that could allow them to eventually cause physical damage, according to U.S. cyber security firm Cylance.

The dollar marked a fresh seven-year high against the yen on Wednesday, which helped lift the Nikkei to a similar record, while oil prices recovered after data showed a drop in U.S. supply.

The founders of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.N) and Tencent Holdings Ltd (0700.HK) were among a consortium of investors who purchased stakes in Ping An Insurance Group Co of China Ltd (2318.HK) (601318.SS) in a HK$36.5 billion ($4.7 billion) deal on Sunday, in one of the largest Hong Kong share offerings of the year.

Standard Chartered (STAN.L) said it is considering replacing its banking advisers, UBS and JPMorgan, and has invited rival investment banks to pitch for the potentially lucrative business.

Japanese drugmaker Otsuka Holdings Co Ltd plans to buy U.S.-based Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc for about $3.5 billion to expand its neurologic drug portfolio ahead of an expiration of a key drug patent.

Germany's auto market will return to growth for the first time in three years in 2014 and may expand further next year, the VDA industry association said on Tuesday.

U.S. online sales grew a smaller than expected 8 percent on Cyber Monday after web promotions before and during the Thanksgiving weekend robbed business from what has traditionally been the busiest day of the year for Internet shopping.

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd agreed to sell its fibre optics operations to U.S. specialty glass maker Corning Inc, exiting another non-core business to focus on shoring up underperforming key areas like smartphones.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation warned U.S. businesses that hackers have used malicious software to launch a destructive cyberattack in the United States, following a devastating breach last week at Sony Pictures Entertainment.

Standard & Poor's on Tuesday cast doubt on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ability to repair Japan's tattered finances less than two weeks away from a snap election, after Moody's downgraded the country's sovereign debt rating.

British insurer Aviva (AV.L) agreed terms on Tuesday for a 5.6 billion pound ($8.8 billion) all-share takeover of rival Friends Life (FLG.L), responding to pressures caused by pension industry reform.

Stock markets recovered from their latest bout of oil and growth-related trauma on Tuesday, helped by promises from U.S. policymakers and the head of the IMF that lower fuel costs would boost the world economy.

Azul SA, Brazil's third-biggest airline, revived plans for an initial public offering in Sao Paulo and New York as it prepared to add the first of 75 Airbus jets and to begin flights to the United States.

The United Auto Workers union said on Monday it will press managers of the Daimler AG's (DAIGn.DE) Mercedes-Benz assembly plant in Alabama to respect the right of workers to discuss organizing a local union while on the factory floor.

Asian equities gained on Tuesday as a rebound in the crude oil price gave resource-related sectors a breather, but Tokyo shares bucked the trend and slipped as the yen's losing streak was tempered.

Security researchers say they have uncovered a cyber espionage ring focused on stealing corporate secrets for the purpose of gaming the stock market, in an operation that has compromised sensitive data about dozens of publicly held companies.

A massive data collection system that Wall Street's industry-funded watchdog is pushing in order to ramp up oversight would cost clearing firms $680 million to build, plus other costs to the industry that far exceed the regulator's initial estimates, a major trade group said on Monday.

General Motors Co (GM.N) will recall 316,357 SUVs and sedans, mainly in North America, because the low-beam headlights can stop working, the company said on Monday.

The Federal Reserve is welcoming the sharp drop in global energy prices, with two influential policymakers on Monday cheering the boost it should provide American pocketbooks and shrugging off any pressure on already low inflation.