President Xi Jinping urged China and France to "strengthen solidarity and cooperation" and told counterpart Emmanuel Macron he was ready to work "hand in hand with Europe", Chinese state media reported Thursday.

China and France should "strengthen solidarity and cooperation", Xi told Macron in a call, adding that China was "willing to work hand in hand with Europe to address global challenges", state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Global shares fell Thursday as investors reacted to growing worries over surging U.S. debt.

France's CAC 40 slipped 0.8% to 7,849.87, while Germany's DAX declined 0.7% to 23,962.00. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.7% to 8,728.84.

EU lawmakers greenlighted tariffs on fertilizer imports from Russia on Thursday, despite European farmers' fears the move could send prices soaring.

The European Parliament voted 411-100 for a bill that will enact duties in July and gradually increase them to a point where they would make imports unviable.

The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday after a marathon overnight debate to approve President Donald Trump's sprawling domestic policy mega-bill, led by an extension of his first term tax cuts.

The "One Big, Beautiful Bill Act" -- which would slash spending on the Medicaid health insurance program and food aid -- now advances to the Senate, where it is expected to undergo significant changes.

Germany's economy will stagnate this year as the country faces headwinds from U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and trade threats, the government's panel of independent economic advisers said Wednesday.

Germany has Europe's biggest economy, but hasn't seen significant economic growth in five years and the gross domestic product shrank in each of the last two years.

Inflation in the U.K. spiked to its highest level for more than a year in April amid a raft of higher domestic bills, such as energy and water, official figures showed Wednesday.

The Office for National Statistics said that its key measure of inflation, as measured by the consumer prices index, rose by 3.5% in the year to April, up from 2.6% in March.

President Donald Trump loves big numbers — and he's always happy to talk them up.

Trump, who coined the phrase "truthful hyperbole" in his book "The Art of the Deal," over the last few days has been steadily increasing the amount of money he says that countries in the Mideast pledged to invest in the U.S. when he visited the region last week. He didn't provide underlying details.

Deputy U.S. Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus has a plan to get Lebanon out of its economic crisis, the diplomat said at an Economic Forum in Qatar.

"The International Monetary Fund is not the only choice," Ortagus said, adding that she has a big plan for Lebanon and a vision that allows Lebanon to become a country of investments and maybe then it would not even need the IMF loan.

Crude prices rallied Wednesday following a report that U.S. intelligence suggested Israel was planning a strike on Iranian nuclear facilities, which would send geopolitical tensions into overdrive and fuel regional conflict fears.

While safe haven gold pushed almost two percent higher, the news from CNN appeared to be having little detrimental effect on Asian equities, with most extending the previous day's rally.

The EU on Tuesday said it is preparing to impose a two-euro ($2.25) flat fee on low-value packages from outside the bloc, the majority of which come from China.

EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic told the European Parliament e-commerce platforms would be expected to pay the fee, which aims to help the bloc tackle the challenges from a massive influx of cheap mailed items.