Strict COVID-19 control measures in China have overtaken sour U.S.-China relations as the top concern of U.S. companies in the country, a business lobby said on Monday.

Britain's services businesses reported a record increase in costs over the past three months and are downbeat about the future, as inflationary headwinds look set to squeeze demand further, the Confederation of British Industry said on Tuesday.

Japan's jobless rate was steady at 2.6% in July, while the availability of jobs grew for the seventh straight month to a more than two-year high, government data showed on Tuesday.

China will step up measures to boost demand and stabilise employment and prices in the second half of the year to optimise economic outcomes, the country's finance ministry said on Tuesday, as policymakers strive to prop up faltering growth.

Stock and bond markets attempted to steady on Tuesday, as investors turned their focus to inflation data and this week's U.S. labour market report, to gauge if interest rate hikes that have been priced in around the world are justified.

Oil prices dipped on Tuesday, paring some gains from the previous session, as the market feared that more aggressive interest rates hikes from central banks may lead to a global economic slowdown and soften fuel demand.