
Brazil's economy, in recession since mid-year, contracted 1.7% in the third quarter, compared to the April-June period, and decreased 4.5% relative to the same period in 2014, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, or IBGE, said on Tuesday.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan say they will give away 99% of their shares in the company to good causes as they announce the birth of their daughter Max. Zuckerberg made the announcement in a letter to Max on his Facebook page.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Brazil's Dilma Rousseff met in Paris on the sidelines of the ongoing climate talks, and agreed to strengthen cooperation in a number of areas including a common position regarding global warming.

Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel García-Margallo became on Sunday the first foreign official to be received by president-elect Mauricio Macri after he won the November 22 runoff election, and announced a new 'spectacular' era is beginning in Madrid’s relations with Argentina.

Pope Francis on Monday said Christians and Muslims were brothers and urged them to reject hatred and violence as he visited a mosque in the Central African Republic's capital which has been ravaged by sectarian conflict.

India's economic growth picked up in July-September, outpacing China on improving domestic demand and manufacturing activity, and the acceleration could persuade the country's central bank to keep interest rates unchanged at its Tuesday meeting.

The Venezuelan government sought Monday to downplay security fears around the country's upcoming legislative elections, rejecting the possibility of violence or a coup. With polls showing President Nicolas Maduro's populist movement on track for a landmark defeat by the opposition in Sunday's vote, speculation and rumors have swirled about possible violence or moves by the ruling party to cling to power.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that China's currency, the Yuan, will join the fund's basket of reserve currencies. Currently just the US dollar, the euro, the yen and the pound are in the group.

Argentina’s conservative, business-friendly president-elect Mauricio Macri won the presidential election earlier this month with 51.34% of the vote, according to final results released Monday. His rival, incumbent Daniel Scioli, finished with 48.66% percent, said the head of the national electoral authority, Alejandro Tullio.

Murilo Ferreira has resigned as chairman of Brazilian state oil company Petrobras, the firm said Monday. Ferreira, the CEO of mining giant Vale, took a leave of absence in September and Luiz Nelson Guedes de Carvalho, who has served as interim chairman since then, will continue in that role for the moment, the company said in a brief statement.