EU president Herman van Rompuy warned Thursday that Britain will struggle to win support for its plans to renegotiate its membership of the European Union, and said that trying to exit the bloc could prove costly.

In a speech in London, Van Rompuy urged Britain to stay inside the 27-member group, saying it had a role to play in reforming the union and would have a stronger voice in world affairs than if it went it alone.

Tourists and business people seeking visas to visit the United States could face even longer waits at already swamped U.S. embassies if severe budget cuts kick in at the State Department.

It was increasingly apparent that no legislative solution will be ready before automatic budget cuts -- the so-called sequester -- kick in on Friday, forcing a wide range of government agencies to trim services.

The United States was braced for $85 billion in budget cuts due to hit Friday in a self-inflicted wound brought on by deep ideological antipathy between President Barack Obama and Republicans.

The cuts, which could cost a million jobs, will slice public services and threaten an economy that is already barely growing, and arrive with both sides agreeing on only one thing -- that the other is to blame.

EU member states must cover a 16-17 billion euros shortfall in this year's budget before talking about approval for their hotly contested 2014-20 spending plans, European Parliament head Martin Schulz warned Thursday.

The 2013 budget shows a deficit of 16 to 17 billion euros and "deficits are forbidden at the EU level, Schulz said in Dublin at a press conference with Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny.

The head of Syrian Air on Thursday invited foreign airlines to resume flights to Damascus, offering discounts and giving assurances that security has been restored on the airport road.

"I call on airlines to resume their flights and operations through Damascus International Airport, as well as Latakia airport (western Syria) and Qamishli airport (in the east)," Ghaida Abdel Latif told Agence France Presse.

Bailed-out Spanish banking giant Bankia suffered a loss of 19 billion euros ($25 billion) in 2012, it said in an earnings statement Thursday.

It said the losses were as expected after the Spanish government nationalized Bankia in May, turning it into a symbol of Spain's banking collapse.

The German labor market continues to defy the eurozone debt crisis, with the jobless total falling to its lowest level in five months in February, official data showed on Thursday.

On the face of it, headline unemployment rose this month, but that was primarily due to seasonal factors, monthly data compiled by the Federal Labor Office showed.

Asia has more billionaires than any other continent, followed by North America and Europe, according to a survey by a China-based wealth magazine released on Thursday.

There were 1,453 people around the world with a personal wealth of $1 billion or more as of January, said the Hurun Report, a luxury magazine publisher that compiled the list.

The European Union has reached a deal to cap bankers' bonuses, which critics say played a major role in driving the financial crisis, officials said on Thursday.

The deal was struck early on Thursday, with the European Parliament and the EU's current Irish presidency agreeing on how to implement new rules for the banking sector.

Oil-rich UAE will channel $500 million this year into development projects in neighboring Oman as part of a $2.5 billion pledge within a Gulf aid program, a top Emirati official said on Wednesday.

"The UAE government will pump $0.5 billion this year through the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development," said the fund's chief Mohammed al-Swaidi in Oman.