Japan sank into a trade deficit of 2.2 trillion yen ($15 billion) for the first six month of this year, according to government data released Thursday, as exports were hit by President Donald Trump's tariffs.

In June, Japan's exports slipped 0.5% from a year earlier after its shipments of vehicles and other products were slapped with a 25% tariff. Trump has postponed implementing that higher import duty until Aug. 1, to allow time for negotiations but so far no deal has been reached.

American companies in China are reporting record-low new investment plans for this year and declining confidence in their profitability, with uncertainty in U.S.-China relations and President Donald Trump's tariffs their top concerns, according to a survey released Wednesday.

The companies are also challenged by China's slowing economy, where weak domestic demand and overcapacity in local industries are eroding profitability for the Americans.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz are set to sign a treaty on Thursday pledging to tighten defense ties and step up law-enforcement cooperation against gangs that smuggle migrants across the English Channel.

The center-right German leader is in London on his first official visit to Britain since taking office in May. Starmer visited Berlin in August 2024, announcing plans for the U.K.-Germany "friendship and cooperation" treaty with Merz's predecessor, Olaf Scholz.

The Senate has passed about $9 billion in federal spending cuts requested by President Donald Trump, including deep reductions to public broadcasting and foreign aid, moving forward on one of the president's top priorities despite concerns from several Republican senators.

The legislation, which now moves to the House, would have a tiny impact on the nation's rising debt but could have major ramifications for the targeted spending, from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to U.S. food aid programs abroad.

President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday that he plans to place tariffs of over 10% on smaller countries, including nations in Africa and the Caribbean.

"We'll probably set one tariff for all of them," Trump said, adding that it could be "a little over 10% tariff" on goods from at least 100 nations.

U.S. stock indexes are ticking higher on Wednesday following a better-than-expected update on inflation across the country.

The S&P 500 was up 0.2% in early trading and approaching its all-time high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 170 points, or 0.4%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was hovering around its own record set the day before.

U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has described the Lebanese Central Bank’s decision to bar banks and brokerages from dealing with the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Qard Al-Hasan financial institution as a “step in the right direct by the Lebanese government.”

The Central Bank of Lebanon has said that licensed financial institutions are "barred from any dealings with unlicensed financial institutions, such as the Al-Qard Al-Hasan Association," the financial arm of Hezbollah.

In a circular, the Central Bank said banks, financial institutions and other institutions licensed by the Central Bank, as well as financial intermediaries and collective investment schemes, are barred from engaging in any transactions -- financial, commercial, or otherwise, directly or indirectly, fully or partially -- with “unlicensed exchange institutions, money transfer companies, associations and entities.”

A drone strike forced a U.S. company to suspend operations at an oil field in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region Tuesday, amid a wave of similar attacks targeting the region's energy infrastructure.

The Kurdistan natural resources ministry said the Sarsang oil field in Duhok province was hit, calling the strike "an act of terrorism against the Kurdistan Region's vital economic infrastructure".

China's exports accelerated in June as a reprieve on U.S. tariffs prompted a rush of orders by companies and consumers ahead of an August deadline.

Exports climbed 5.8% from a year earlier, up from a 4.8% rise in May. Imports also recovered, growing 1.1% in the first increase so far this year, according to customs data released Monday.