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China was the biggest source of applications for international patents in the world last year, pushing the United States out of the top spot it has held since the global system was set up more than 40 years ago, the U.N. patent agency said on Tuesday.

Honda Motor Co on Tuesday said that it had furloughed workers at its U.S. plants which will be closed until May 1 as demand for cars in the country has plummeted due to the spread of the coronavirus.

The world's biggest oil and gas companies are cutting spending this year following a collapse in oil prices driven by a slump in demand because of the coronavirus crisis and a price war between top exporters Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Department store chain operator Macy's Inc said on Tuesday Chief Financial Officer Paula Price would step down from the role next month after nearly two years on the job.

U.S. stock index futures bounced for a second straight day on Tuesday as risk appetite returned on tentative signs that the coronavirus outbreak was starting to plateau in hard-hit U.S. states.

A leading global health fund has asked international businesses and governments to provide $8 billion to support development and production of COVID-19 tests, drugs and vaccines.

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said on Tuesday its first-quarter operating profit likely managed to rise slightly from a slump a year earlier, as solid chip sales helped cushion the blow from the coronavirus pandemic on smartphones and TVs.

German carmaker Volkswagen hopes to partially reopen its plant in Spain's Navarra region on April 20 after its closure in mid-March due to the coronavirus outbreak, a spokesman for the plant said on Tuesday.

Any final agreement for how much OPEC and its allies, a group know as OPEC+, will cut during their talks on Thursday would depend on the volumes that other producers such as the United States, Canada and Brazil are willing to reduce, an OPEC source said on Tuesday.

Luckin Coffee's app has rocketed to become the second most popular in China as consumers rushed to claim a free drink that it has long offered for downloading, worried the chain might collapse after it said much of its sales last year were fabricated.

Oil rose on Tuesday amid hope that the world's biggest producers of crude will agree to cut output as the coronavirus pandemic crushes demand, even as analysts warn a global recession may be deeper than expected and big production cuts will be needed.

British cinema operator Cineworld said on Tuesday it has shut all its 787 cinemas across 10 countries due to the coronavirus pandemic and that it was in talks with its lenders for ongoing liquidity requirements.

Asian stock markets rallied for a second day on Tuesday and riskier currencies rose, on tentative signs the coronavirus crisis may be levelling off in New York and receding in Europe.

Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air is repatriating citizens and transporting medical equipment for east European governments, in a move coupling one-off charter traffic with savvy government relations amid the coronavirus crisis.

French airports operator ADP is losing more than 3 million euros ($3.25 million) in sales a day due to the coronavirus crisis, Chief Executive Augustin de Romanet said on Tuesday.

British cinema operator Cineworld said on Tuesday all its 787 cinemas across 10 countries have been shut due to the coronavirus pandemic and that it was in talks with its lenders for ongoing liquidity requirements.

Asian firms appear better equipped to pay stable dividends compared with their western counterparts that are constrained by highly levered balance-sheets and a need to preserve cash during the coronavirus outbreak.

Employees at Valero Energy Corp's Port Arthur, Texas, refinery expressed worries about the company's slow response to keep the coronavirus from spreading there after two workers tested positive, four people familiar with the matter said.

The governors of New York, New Jersey and Louisiana pointed to tentative signs on Monday that the coronavirus outbreak may be starting to plateau in their states but warned against complacency as the death toll nationwide approached 11,000.

France's Thales on Tuesday became the latest major company to slash its dividend, suspend profit guidance and top up liquidity in response to the coronavirus crisis.