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Bangladesh seeks IMF aid: How badly has Iran war hit its economy?
The International Monetary Fund warns that Iran war could trigger a spike in global debt levels.
![Foreign ministers and senior officials from partner countries gather during the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on May 14, 2026 [AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/afp_6a06f56b4041-1778840939.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
![OpenAI CEO Sam Altman addresses the gathering at the AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India on Feb. 19, 2026. [Bhawika Chhabra/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/image-1771521529.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
![Huang Jiawei, Unitree's marketing director, operates a Go2 robot dog to perform a backflip during a demonstration to Reuters at a park in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China on March 21, 2025. [Florence Lo/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/image-1771448394.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
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EXPLAINER
How did China’s trade surplus hit $1 trillion?
Donald Trump’s trade tariffs have failed to hold back China’s export dominance, which scaled new heights in November.
India implements sweeping labour reforms despite union opposition
Four new labour codes come into force as India seeks to attract investment and strengthen manufacturing.
![Labourers work at the Mahatma Gandhi Ashram redevelopment site in Ahmedabad on November 20, 2025. [File: Shammi Mehra/AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/000_84LJ8EP-1763745023.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
EXPLAINER
China tightens export controls on rare-earth metals: Why this matters
It is a strategic move in advance of new round of tricky trade talks with the US.
India, China to resume direct flights after 5 years as relations thaw
Latest move underscores efforts to normalise ties and draw closer in wake of Trump’s policies, stiff tariffs.
Trump’s tariff threat to Brazil is a gift to Lula
By attacking Brazil’s sovereignty, Trump may have handed the leftist president a political and diplomatic opportunity.
Death toll rises to 36 after India pharmaceutical factory blast, fire
Another 36 workers remain in hospital with burns and other injuries after the blast and fire at the Sigachi factory.
![Rescue workers look for survivors after at an explosion and a fire at a pharmaceutical factory in an industrial area in Sangareddy, some 50 kilometers from Hyderabad, India, Monday, [File: June 30, 2025/AP]](/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/AP25181423639027-1751354156.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
EXPLAINER
‘Tidal wave’: How 75 nations face Chinese debt crisis in 2025
Developing countries to pay a record $22bn this year, mostly linked to loans from China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
![Workers stand beside an Electric Multiple Unit high-speed train for a rail link project part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, at Tegalluar train depot in Bandung, West Java province, Indonesia [File: Yuddy Cahya Budiman/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/2022-10-13T064713Z_359954455_RC250X95CIL1_RTRMADP_3_INDONESIA-RAILWAY-CHINA-1693361098.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
EXPLAINER
Can Bitcoin save Bhutan’s struggling economy?
Amid a brain drain and economic woes, Bhutan has used cryptocurrency to double the salaries of its civil servants.
EXPLAINER
How much will Trump’s new tariffs hurt other countries and US consumers?
Trump’s reciprocal tariffs range from 10 percent to more than 50 percent on the US’s trading partners.
EXPLAINER
Have Trump’s tariff threats helped China boost its exports?
Trump has said he is considering imposing a 10 percent tariff on China from February.
