海角大神

Trade deals brought relief for some Asian countries. President Donald Trump announced deals with Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia, and a handful of other countries that will relieve some pressure on companies and consumers. Steep tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum remain, and many other countries, including South Korea and Thailand, have yet to clinch agreements. A deal with China is pending. 鈥� The Associated Press

Aid groups say 鈥渕ass starvation鈥� is spreading in Gaza. A statement signed by 111 organizations called for governments to take action, demanding an immediate ceasefire and that restrictions be lifted on the flow of humanitarian aid. They noted that food, clean water, medical supplies, and other items sit untouched just outside Gaza. Israel, which controls all supplies entering the enclave, denies it is responsible for shortages of food. 鈥� Reuters
Our coverage: Anti-Hamas gangs are disrupting food distribution, and Palestinians in Gaza fear being forgotten.

Ukrainians protested a controversial anti-corruption bill. Thousands gathered in Kyiv and other cities on Tuesday to urge President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to veto a bill that tightens oversight of two key anti-corruption agencies, which critics say could significantly weaken their independence. The rally was the first major protest against the government in more than three years of war. Mr. Zelenskyy signed the bill into law late Tuesday. 鈥� AP
Our coverage: See today鈥檚 story on the Ukrainian newspapers fighting to remain independent.

Russia moved to outlaw 鈥渆xtremist鈥� online searches. Officials define extremist activity broadly; it includes opposition groups like the one created by late opposition leader Alexei Navalny and the 鈥渋nternational LGBT movement.鈥� Authorities have ramped up their crackdown on dissent since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Online censorship and prosecutions for social media posts and comments have soared, and independent news outlets and rights groups have been shut down. 鈥� AP

The Labor Department plans to deregulate workplaces. The proposed moves touch on issues ranging from minimum-wage requirements for some workers to exposure to substances considered harmful. The department says it aims to deliver on President Trump鈥檚 commitment to restoring prosperity through deregulation. Critics say the changes would put workers at greater risk of harm. 鈥� AP

Students in Bangladesh demanded accountability following crash. Hundreds of students have protested near the site of the deadly crash of a Bangladesh air force training jet into a school in the capital. Tuesday was declared a day of national mourning for the 32 victims, and the military launched an investigation into the crash. The city of Dhaka is still recovering from last year鈥檚 student uprising that forced the prime minister from power. 鈥� AP

Venus Williams made a winning return to tennis. The seven-time Grand Slam champion beat Peyton Stearns in a first-round match at the Washington Open on Tuesday. At age 45, she became the oldest player to win a tour-level singles match since 2004, following a 16-month hiatus from competing. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter how many times you fall down,鈥� said Ms. Williams, reported by WTA Tennis. 鈥淭here are no limits for excellence.鈥� 鈥� Staff

As President Donald Trump pursues his goal of the largest deportation campaign in U.S. history, his administration has tapped an unusual range of government agencies to aid the effort.聽The Monitor has identified about a dozen additional agencies, from the Small Business Administration to stewards of public land. Their efforts include law enforcement partnerships, data-sharing, border militarization, and renewed scrutiny of public benefits.聽It amounts to 鈥渢he largest redirection of federal resources and information toward a goal since 9/11,鈥� says Theresa Cardinal Brown of Cornell Law School.

President Donald Trump finds himself in the middle of an uproar within his base over his administration鈥檚 handling of the Epstein files. And the president has leaned into the strategy 鈥� diversion 鈥� that has often gotten him out of difficult positions in his professional and political career. But so far, that seems not to be working this time. And Mr. Trump may actually be following the pattern that got him into the current Epstein debacle with his supporters: promising dramatic revelations he can鈥檛 or won鈥檛 deliver on.

U.S. Agency for International Development funding helped nurture new independent media outlets in Ukraine to play their part in strengthening democracy. Now, there are concerns about a return to the days of media owned and dominated by oligarchs, political parties, and the state.

Arabs and Kurds in Syria are trying something new: working with one another to secure areas of the country. Can differing ideas about each faction鈥檚 significance in maintaining peace grow, or will this new agreement fizzle out?

Touqeer Ashraf, a resident of Gusoo village in Pulwama district, is the creator of Keashur Praw (鈥淜ashmiri shimmering light鈥�), an Instagram page with 117,000 followers and a YouTube channel with more than 55,000 subscribers. His goal is to help preserve and promote the Kashmiri language, which is one of the 400 of India鈥檚 780 languages at risk of extinction as other languages such as Urdu, Hindi, and English have taken root in the Kashmir Valley.

The world鈥檚 auto markets were shocked in May when China鈥檚 leading electric vehicle maker, BYD (Build Your Dreams), offered a model for the equivalent of about $8,000. The low price seemed untied to the true costs of EVs.

A while later, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Chinese economy 鈥� the world鈥檚 second-largest 鈥� is 鈥渢he most unbalanced鈥� in history. He was reflecting global concerns that China would export goods at artificially low prices to boost its economy and thus damage others, driving a global descent into trade barriers.

That concern, however, was not only outside China.

In recent months, the Chinese Communist Party has admitted that excessive government incentives in the country鈥檚 showcase industries 鈥� including solar panels, batteries, and EVs 鈥� have helped distort market forces, leading to excess capacity and overheated price wars. The ruling party is worried that private firms will now reduce spending on research and set back China鈥檚 drive to be a leader in innovation.

The downward spiral of prices, combined with a slump in property values, has led to deflation, or what is dubbed in Mandarin neijuan, 鈥渢urning inward.鈥� In June, producer prices in China fell 3.6% from a year earlier, the largest decline in more than two years. 聽

鈥淣eijuan directly affects wage 颅levels, government tax revenues, investment confidence and the whole economy,鈥� declared an editorial in the People鈥檚 Daily.

Deflation often comes with a self-perpetuating mentality among consumers that is hard to break. If they expect prices to drop, they delay purchases, causing prices to drop again. In the same way, businesses that keep expecting government subsidies rush to make more products.

鈥淐hina鈥檚 overcapacity isn鈥檛 just a manufacturing issue but a mindset issue,鈥� wrote Singaporean economist Kok How Lee in the South China Morning Post.

The party is now trying to correct that mindset by lowering subsides, forcing companies to merge, and curbing the practice of big manufacturers forcing small suppliers to lower prices. Party leader Xi Jinping calls it 鈥渢he orderly exit of outdated production capacity.鈥� The mental shift may have begun. Some economists say China could beat deflation by 2026. The rest of the world is watching.