Soldiers erected sandbag flood barriers in a city near China's largest freshwater lake after the heaviest rainfall in nearly six decades drenched the swollen Yangtze River basin.

Floods across central and eastern China have left more than 140 people dead or missing and are swelling major rivers and lakes to record-high levels, with authorities warning that the worst was yet to come.

An abandoned oil tanker lying off Yemen's coast with 1.1 million barrels of crude on board is deteriorating badly and could rupture at any time, with disastrous results for Red Sea marine life, U.N. and other experts warn.

Wildfires raging in Siberia in record summer temperatures have decreased considerably over the past week, Russia's forest service said Saturday, as it battles blazes by cloud seeding and explosives.

Tropical depression Fay moved north over New York early Saturday and was expected to continue to weaken through the weekend, forecasters said.

The depression had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (55kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami said in its 2 a.m. advisory. It was located about 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of New York City.

International investors want Brazil to show "results" in fighting Amazon deforestation before they will consider participating in environmental protection projects in the country, Vice President Hamilton Mourao said Thursday after speaking with the funds.

Japan said Thursday it would tighten rules for investment in foreign coal-fired power stations on environmental grounds, but stopped short of ending government funding for projects.

European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde on Wednesday said she would consider "every avenue available" to tackle climate change, signalling that the bank could use its massive stimulus scheme to target green bonds.

British finance minister Rishi Sunak will Wednesday unveil a mini-budget to help kickstart the UK economy following devastation wreaked by coronavirus fallout, featuring green investment worth £3.0-billion ($3.7-billion, 3.3 billion euros).

Amazon forest fires in Brazil increased by 19.5 percent in June compared to the same month last year, making it the worst June in 13 years, authorities have revealed.