The European Central Bank's move on interest rates next week must be "orderly and predictable", French ECB policymaker Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Wednesday.

 South Korea's factory activity shrank in August by the sharpest pace in two years, on weakening demand amid high inflation, rising interest rates and the war in Ukraine, a private-sector survey showed on Thursday.

Asia's factory activity slumped in August as China's zero COVID curbs and cost pressures continued to hurt businesses, surveys showed on Thursday, darkening the outlook for the region's fragile economic recovery.

Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Thursday, led lower by increased supply and worries that the global economy could slow further with renewed restrictions to curb COVID-19 in China.

The dollar rose broadly on Thursday, particularly against the yen, as investors braced for higher U.S. interest rates while expecting anchored Japanese rates to go nowhere anytime soon.

China's factory activity likely contracted again in August, a Reuters poll showed on Monday, as COVID flare-ups and a distressed property sector pummelled demand while a power crunch in southwestern China hit production.