Qatar on Tuesday officially launches one of its most "significant" labor reforms to guarantee migrant workers' wages, but rights groups are concerned over implementation of the new regulations.

The Wage Protection System (WPS) aims to ensure that migrant laborers, many working on 2022 World Cup-related projects, will finally receive their pay on time.

Brazilian farmer Marcos Croce has woken up and smelled the coffee -- embracing the organic trend and bucking Brazil's long-held status as a mass producer of poor quality beans.

His Hacienda Ambiental Fortaleza plantation, surrounded by tropical plants and trees in Sao Paulo state, goes against everything that has made Brazil the world's biggest, though hardly most appreciated, source of coffee.

NBA star James Harden will soon be dribbling the ball with Adidas sneakers on his feet as the German sportswear maker hopes to retake U.S. market share from basketball giant Nike and number two Under Armour.

Signing up the Houston Rockets guard in a reported 13-year, $200 million (180 million euro) deal aims to make Adidas trendy in a market where it has been caught flat-footed before.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's appointment of a Harvard-educated lawyer to run the state oil company demonstrates his anti-corruption resolve -- but only marks the start of a long reform journey, analysts say.

Industry observers note the formidable challenge he faces in sanitizing a sector that accounts for 70 percent of the country's revenue, but which is notorious for mismanagement and rampant theft.

Facing a cold shoulder from Europe and increased competition at home, Russia's Gazprom has struggled to assert dominance on the global energy market, prompting speculation the energy giant could have no choice but to splinter.

With the Russian economy slipping into recession on the back of lower oil prices and Western sanctions over Ukraine, the economy ministry predicted Gazprom would produce 414 billion cubic meters of gas this year, an all-time low for the public company sitting atop some of the world's largest natural gas reserves.

American billionaire George Soros's fund has sold most of its stake in the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, according to regulatory filings Friday. 

In its quarterly statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Soros Funds Management said that as of June 30, it had sold all but nearly 60,000 Alibaba shares, valued at $4.88 million. 

The EU said it is "entirely feasible" that eurozone finance ministers meeting in Brussels later Friday will endorse a multi-billion euro bailout deal approved by the Greek parliament.

"We are encouraged by the strong vote this morning in the Greek parliament," European Commission spokeswoman Annika Breidthardt told a press conference.

Ukraine and its biggest creditors failed to strike a deal Thursday on the second day of talks aimed at finding a workable solution for keeping the ex-Soviet country from hurtling into default.

A brief joint statement issued by Ukraine's finance ministry and the Ad-hoc Committee of Noteholders to Ukraine said the discussions were "detailed" but provided no immediate guidance as to the progress made.

Greece's parliament on Friday approved the country's third international bailout after an all-night debate, hours ahead of a critical meeting by European finance ministers.

A majority of 222 lawmakers approved the 400-page document over 64 who voted against and 11 abstentions.

Spain must stay the course on economic reforms if it wants to generate growth and reduce its sky-high unemployment rate, ahead of a year-end general election, the International Monetary Fund said Friday.

"The clearer we are in not reversing existing structural reforms and fiscal consolidation, the stronger is the defence against any external risks," said Helge Berger, chief of the IMF mission in Spain following the publication of the body's annual report on the country.