Iraq has lost around $60 billion during the Middle East war, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said on Thursday, with Iran blockading a waterway that is crucial to global energy flows.

Lebanon’s central bank has this week canceled the local license of Bank Saderat Iran, one of Iran's largest banks, as the United States steps up pressure on countries to sever commercial ties with Tehran.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Central Bank Governor Karim Souaid stated that the move aims to "send a clear signal to the outside world that we are determined to protect our banking sector from any entity that might expose it to the risk of contamination."

U.S. wholesale inflation surged past analysts' expectations in September, marking its biggest jump since 2022 as the war in Iran sent fuel prices rocketing, government data showed Thursday.

China's exports surged 36.3% in September from a year earlier, its customs agency said Wednesday, bringing it on track to exceed last year's record trade surplus as pressure ramped up from its trading partners, including the European Union, to rebalance trade.

The exports data, which was better than what economists had expected, accelerated from the 25% growth in August. High-tech goods such as semiconductors and autos have helped fuel its rising shipments overseas.

The U.S. and other wealthy nations need to urgently tackle mounting global debt levels that are weighing most heavily on low-income countries and straining the global financial system, the head of the International Monetary Fund said Wednesday.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and other U.S. leaders recognize that the federal deficit and national debt are too high. But economic growth alone would not be enough to address the country's more than $40 trillion in national debt, she said.

The House speaker stood before Donald Trump during his first term at the White House and pointed a finger declaring that with this president, "All roads lead to Putin."

The stark assessment years ago from Nancy Pelosi echoed anew after Trump's surprise announcement last week that he struck a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to import tons of Russian diesel to the U.S. as a way to ease sky-high prices at the pumps for Americans ahead of the midterm elections.

The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday slightly upgraded its outlook for the world economy for this year, while warning of growing risks from rising debt, including borrowing related to artificial intelligence.

The IMF says it expects the global economy to grow at a 3.1% pace this year. That's up from its July forecast for 3.0% growth and well below the 3.5% expansion in 2025. Growth in 2027 should rebound to 3.4%, it said in its latest Economic Outlook.

China's passenger car exports surged 64% in September from the same month in 2025, an industry association reported Monday, as Chinese automakers increasingly focus on exports to drive growth at a time of sluggish domestic sales.

China exported around 919,000 passenger vehicles in September, lifted by overseas demand for plug-in hybrids and pure electric vehicles, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed. In the first nine months of 2026, China exported more than passenger cars, up more than 70% compared with the same period last year.

American-born economists Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford won the Nobel memorial prize in economics on Monday for their work on models that have helped governments and central banks manage economic shocks, such as energy crises and inflation.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the winners in Stockholm, saying the two were being honored for work that has helped policymakers deal with economic fluctuations.

The European Union on Monday formally added almost 1,600 new individuals and entities to its sanctions blacklist over Russia's war on Ukraine, as it seeks to keep pressure on Moscow.

"This is the single largest expansion of our sanctions list since Russia started its war. Europe is again showing a united front. More than half are connected to the production chain for ballistic missiles," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.