Swine flu could affect commodities prices, especially oil, as demand may shrink on fears of a further economic slump because of a worldwide epidemic, Eugen Weinberg, senior commodity analyst at Commerzbank, told CNBC.

Hungary's new prime minister won European Union backing on Tuesday for his crisis management plan aimed at lifting the country from severe recession while keeping a tight rein on public finances.

"As the Fed and the BOE have become more sane by printing money the so called gurus like Soros and Buffett suffer a deficit of sanity. They are saying the actions of these central banks will lead to inflation. I contest that," Hugh Hendry told CNBC.

Tobacco stocks, especially in the US, are among the few assets that Hugh Hendry, chief investment officer at hedge fund Eclectica, said he likes Tuesday, but he added investors should be prudent as world economies are still in the middle of a deleveraging trend.

The recent rise in stocks and talk about green shoots in the markets are optimistic assumptions, as the world downturn "still has a way to run," Hugh Hendry, Chief Investment Officer at Eclectica, told CNBC Tuesday.

Hungary is seeking the support of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a new policy that would add economic stimulus measures to planned spending cuts, new Finance Minister Peter Oszko told the state television MTV on Sunday.

Spanish unemployment soared to 4 million in the first quarter, almost doubling in a year as the recession destroys jobs more quickly than anywhere else in Europe, official data showed on Friday.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick said Thursday nearly half of the Group of 20 nations are considering or have taken measures to restrict trade in the face of an economic downturn.

Hungary's central bank left interest rates unchanged at 9.5 percent at its monthly meeting on Monday, in line with market expectations.

Wall Street’s banking giants JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs turned in better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter, leading many investors to hope that the beleaguered sector is over the worst of its troubles.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Friday banks would be the focus of any unconventional policy response to the financial crisis, and that the ECB needed a strategy to eventually reverse those measures.

Reports that the IMF suggested that Eastern European countries should adopt the euro as soon as possible to solve their current account deficit and exchange rate problems have been dismissed by some experts.

The credit crisis has had a near-catastrophic effect on many of the emerging economies in Eastern Europe. The International Monetary Fund shelled out tens of billions in emergency loans for the region, while governments have collapsed and angry protesters took to the streets in some countries.

The once-booming CEE is stealing the limelight again but this time for less palatable reasons. As one analyst put it, "Eastern Europe's problem is a greater weight on the Western European nations than the subprime is in the United States."

European stocks were set to rise on Thursday, tracking gains in Asia, where Japan's larger-than-expected stimulus plan fuelled hopes for the economy, while investors awaited the Bank of England's interest rate decision.