Britain's financial watchdog said on Wednesday it is talking to fund managers about how to handle Russian assets rendered worthless by sanctions, joining its counterparts in Luxembourg and elsewhere.

BERLIN (Reuters) -Volkswagen Group China said on Wednesday it would as a precautionary measure pause production for another day in Changchun due to COVID cases, but would resume production in Shanghai on Thursday after a 48 hour suspension.

U.S. stock indexes opened higher on Wednesday as signs of progress in Ukraine-Russia peace talks lifted sentiment ahead of a widely expected interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.

The World Trade Organization praised a provisional deal to waive patent rights for COVID-19 vaccines after more than a year of deadlock, although drugmakers said the move risked undermining the industry's ability to respond to future health crises.

(Reuters) -U.S. stocks were poised to open higher on Wednesday as signs of progress in Ukraine-Russia peace talks lifted sentiment ahead of a widely expected interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.

The economic cost of Russia's assault on Ukraine was further exposed on Wednesday as the sanctions-hit country teetered on the brink of its first default on international debt since the Bolshevik revolution.