* Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday urged China and Cambodia to carry forward the ironclad friendship forged by the older generations of leaders of the two countries. Xi made the remarks in his meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, who is here to attend the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance in Shanghai and on his working visit to China.
* Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar in Shanghai Thursday, with both sides calling on the United States and Iran to cease fire and resume talks as soon as possible.
* The number of working children, ages five to 17, in the Philippines increased by 0.8 percent to 868,540 in 2025, up from 861,450 in 2024, according to data recently released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
* New Zealand and Switzerland have agreed to establish a trade and investment dialogue, a senior New Zealand official said on Friday. The move aims at exploring an agreement on trade, economic security, e-commerce, investment and sustainability, New Zealand Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay said in a statement.
* Singapore's non-oil domestic exports (NODX) rose 20.7 percent year on year in June, easing from the 38.4 percent increase recorded in May, official data from Enterprise Singapore showed on Friday.
*The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its economic forecast for Bangladesh, projecting a lower growth rate of 3.5 percent for FY27 (July 2026 to June 2027), down from its earlier estimate of 4.3 percent.
* The Philippines expanded its aid program to provide financial assistance to about 37.5 million Filipinos affected by rising fuel prices, according to local media reports on Thursday.
* A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck off Mexico's southern state of Chiapas on Friday morning, Mexico's National Seismological Service said. The quake occurred at 1448 GMT on Friday. The epicenter, with a depth of 10 km, was initially determined to be at 14.16 degrees north latitude and 93.29 degrees west longitude.
* The United States on Wednesday night announced 25 percent tariffs on certain goods from Brazil under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which will be effective on July 22.
* Russian forces conducted 19 rounds of strikes on Ukraine's key port infrastructure, used for military supplies and fuel storage, in the past week, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday.
* Ukraine's Security Service (SSU) said Friday that it had destroyed a Tu-95 strategic bomber at Russia's Engels military airfield in the Saratov region.
* Croatian authorities have expanded protection and surveillance zones following new African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks in two villages in the eastern part of the country, local media reported Friday.
* Finnish parliament will interrupt its summer recess next Tuesday to debate corruption allegations surrounding the government's pledge of 35 million euros (40 million USD) in conditional support for the Garden Helsinki arena project, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said Thursday.
* Russian forces conducted 19 rounds of strikes on Ukraine's key port infrastructure, used for military supplies and fuel storage, in the past week, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday.
* Turkish authorities detained 67 irregular migrants and five suspected smugglers in an operation off the southwestern province of Mugla on Friday, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
* The Slovenian government on Thursday approved higher budget spending plans for the coming years, with increased allocations aimed primarily at strengthening defense investment.
* The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management on Thursday raised the country's water status from an "imminent water shortage" to an "actual water shortage" as persistent drought and high temperatures continue to strain water resources.
* Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said its aerospace forces on Friday launched a "heavy and surprise" retaliatory attack on the U.S. Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, while Jordan and Bahrain said they intercepted Iranian aerial attacks amid escalating regional tensions.
* Lebanon's post-war recovery and reconstruction will require more than 20 billion USD, according to a policy assessment released Friday by the Beirut-based Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies.
* Kuwait said Friday that an Iranian attack struck a power generation and water desalination plant, causing extensive damage to the facility.
* The Iranian armed forces said Friday their forces have struck U.S. bases and facilities in Syria, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman in retaliation for fresh U.S. strikes on Iran and its infrastructure.
* Israel's Knesset, the country's parliament, on Friday voted unanimously to dissolve itself, paving the way for general elections scheduled for Oct. 27.
* At least 14 people were killed and several others injured Thursday after a passenger minibus plunged into a deep ravine in northern Peru's Cajamarca department, local media reported.
* Nicaragua said Thursday that it had severed diplomatic relations with Italy in response to what it called "unjustified, aggressive and irresponsible statements" by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.
* Today, one in 10 people across the world still lives in extreme poverty, 2.3 billion people go to bed hungry every night, and more than 2 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said Thursday.
* New Zealand has confirmed a second case of H5 avian influenza in a wild bird, prompting authorities to intensify surveillance and biosecurity measures, a senior official said Friday.
