The U.S. economy may be the last to recover from the recession, says Clifford Bennett, chief economist of Kinetic Securities. As such, he tells CNBC's Amanda Drury & Sri Jegarajah the euro-dollar may retest highs of $1.60 as early as June.

The British government is talking to lenders about stepping up loans to credit-starved companies, but a second bailout of banks is not the preferred option, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Sunday.

Iceland was the biggest emerging market causality of 2008, but could another country run into similar problems in 2009? Arnab Das from Dresdner Kleinwort considers the outlook.

Russia's oil and gas giant Gazprom accused Ukraine of stealing gas and shutting down pipes to Europe in an interview with CNBC, an accusation rebuked by Ukraine in an escalating fight that is spreading across the continent.