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US President Donald Trump has said he will send letters to select trade partners facing tariff hikes as early as Monday, piling pressure on countries to strike a deal with Washington before a new August 1 deadline.The White House announced sharp levies on dozens of economies in April, citing a lack of “reciprocity” in trade relations, which were set to kick in on Wednesday, July 9.Trump announced on Friday the levies’ imposition would be pushed to August 1 to allow time for talks to wrap up, but said he signed 12 letters to inform some countries of rate hikes, which will likely be sent on Monday.With Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying the administration was “close to several deals,” where do things stand for economies from Taiwan to the European Union?- EU: ‘Ready’ for deal -The European Union said it is “ready for a deal” with Washington, with the bloc’s trade chief meeting his US counterparts Thursday.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU was targeting an “agreement in principle” when it came to the initial July 9 cutoff.Bessent said the European Union is “making very good progress” after a slow start.With no deal, the US tariff on EU goods doubles from the “baseline” of 10 percent to 20 percent — with Trump previously threatening a 50 percent level.- Vietnam: A pact with uncertainties -Washington and Hanoi unveiled a trade pact Wednesday with much fanfare and few details, but it allowed Vietnam to avoid Trump’s initial 46 percent tariff.Under the agreement, Vietnamese goods face a minimum 20 percent tariff while products made elsewhere face a 40 percent levy — a clause to restrict “transshipping” by Chinese groups.But there remain questions on how the higher levy would apply to products using foreign parts.There is also a risk that Beijing will adopt retaliatory measures, analysts warned.- Japan: Rice, autos at stake -Despite being a close US ally and major source of foreign investment, Japan might not escape Trump’s tariff hike.Tokyo’s trade envoy Ryosei Akazawa has made numerous trips to Washington through the end of June.But Trump recently criticized what he described as Japan’s reluctance to open up further to US rice and auto exports.”I’m not sure we’re going to make a deal,” Trump said, adding that the country could pay a tariff of “30 percent, 35 percent, or whatever the number is that we determine.”- India: A good position -Indian manufacturers and exporters want to believe they can avoid a 26 percent tariff.Negotiations between both countries have been going well for weeks, and Trump himself suggested at the end of June that a “very big” agreement was imminent.Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations, said the feedback he received “suggests positive developments.” But he maintained that the situation was fluid. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has stressed that agriculture and dairy products remain “very big red lines.”- South Korea: Muted optimism -Seoul, which is already reeling from US tariffs on steel and autos, wants to avert a sweeping 25 percent levy on its other exports.Cooperation in shipbuilding could be a bargaining chip, but “at this stage, both sides still haven’t clearly defined what exactly they want,” said new President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday.”I can’t say with confidence that we’ll be able to wrap everything up by July 8,” he added.- Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan in the wings -Other Asian economies including Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia, which faces a 49 percent tariff, wait with bated breath.Indonesia has indicated willingness to boost energy, agriculture and merchandise imports from the United States. Bangladesh is proposing to buy Boeing planes and step up imports of US agriculture products.Taiwan, for whom Washington is a vital security partner, faces a 32 percent duty without a pact.Although both sides have faced bumps along the way, Taiwanese Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim said “negotiators from both sides are working diligently” to find a path forward.- Switzerland: Hope for delay -Switzerland’s government said Washington has acknowledged it was acting in good faith, and assumes its tariff level will remain at 10 percent on July 9 while negotiations continue.But without a decision by the president as of the end of June, Switzerland did not rule out that levies could still rise to a promised 31 percent.burs-jug-bys/jgc/aks/aha

In the heart of Data Center Alley — a patch of suburban Washington where much of the world’s internet traffic flows — Visa operates its global fraud command center.The numbers that the payments giant grapples with are enormous. Every year, $15 trillion flows through Visa’s networks, representing roughly 15 percent of the world’s economy. And bad actors constantly try to syphon off some of that money.Modern fraudsters vary dramatically in sophistication.To stay ahead, Visa has invested $12 billion over the past five years building AI-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities, knowing that criminals are also spending big.”You have everybody from a single individual threat actor looking to make a quick buck all the way to really corporatized criminal organizations that generate tens or hundreds of millions of dollars annually from fraud and scam activities,” Michael Jabbara, Visa’s global head of fraud solutions, told AFP during a tour of the company’s security campus.”These organizations are very structured in how they operate.”The best-resourced criminal syndicates now focus on scams that directly target consumers, enticing them into purchases or transactions by manipulating their emotions.”Consumers are continuously vulnerable. They can be exploited, and that’s where we’ve seen a much higher incidence of attacks recently,” Jabbara said.- Scam centers -The warning signs are clear: anything that seems too good to be true online is suspicious, and romance opportunities with strangers from distant countries are especially dangerous.”What you don’t realize is that the person you’re chatting with is more likely than not in a place like Myanmar,” Jabbara warned.He said human-trafficking victims are forced to work in multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centers built by Asian crime networks in Myanmar’s lawless border regions. The most up-to-date fraud techniques are systematic and quietly devastating. Once criminals obtain your card information, they automatically distribute it across numerous merchant websites that generate small recurring charges — amounts low enough that victims may not notice for months.Some of these operations increasingly resemble legitimate tech companies, offering services and digital products to fraudsters much like Google or Microsoft cater to businesses.On the dark web, criminals can purchase comprehensive fraud toolkits. “You can buy the software. You can buy a tutorial on how to use the software. You can get access to a mule network on the ground or you can get access to a bot network” to carry out denial-of-service attacks that overwhelm servers with traffic, effectively shutting them down.Just as cloud computing lowered barriers for startups by eliminating the need to build servers, “the same type of trend has happened in the cyber crime and fraud space,” Jabbara explained.These off-the-shelf services can also enable bad actors to launch brute force attacks on an industrial scale — using repeated payment attempts to crack a card’s number, expiry date, and security code.The sophistication extends to corporate-style management, Jabbara said.Some criminal organizations now employ chief risk officers who determine operational risk appetite. They might decide that targeting government infrastructure and hospitals generates an excessive amount of attention from law enforcement and is too risky to pursue. – ‘Millions of attacks’ -To combat these unprecedented threats, Jabbara leads a payment scam disruption team focused on understanding criminal methodologies.From a small room called the Risk Operations Center in Virginia, employees analyze data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use.In the larger Cyber Fusion Center, staff monitor potential cyberattacks targeting Visa’s own infrastructure around the clock.”We deal with millions of attacks across different parts of our network,” Jabbara noted, emphasizing that most are handled automatically without human intervention.Visa maintains identical facilities in London and Singapore, ensuring 24-hour global vigilance.

US tariffs will kick in on August 1 if trading partners from Taiwan to the European Union do not strike deals with Washington, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday. The rates will “boomerang back” to the sometimes very high levels that President Donald Trump had announced on April 2 — before he suspended the levies to allow for trade talks and set a July 9 deadline for agreements, Bessent told CNN.Bessent confirmed comments by Trump to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday in which he also cited a new deadline: “Well, I’ll probably start them on August 1.” The president told reporters Sunday he had signed about a dozen letters to inform countries of rate hikes, to be sent out on Monday. “I think we’ll have most countries done by July 9, either a letter or a deal,” Trump told reporters Sunday, adding that some deals have already been made.Standing at his side, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed tariffs would kick in on August 1, “but the President is setting the rates and the deals right now.”The tariffs were part of a broader announcement in April where Trump imposed a 10 percent duty on goods from almost all trading partners, with a plan to step up these rates for a select group within days.But he swiftly paused the hikes until July 9, allowing for trade talks to take place.Countries have been pushing to strike deals that would help them avoid these elevated duties.So far, the Trump administration has unveiled deals with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, while Washington and Beijing agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high levies on each other’s products.Bessent said the administration was “close to several deals.””I would expect to see several big announcements over the next couple of days,” he said.But he would not say which countries he was referring to, adding: “I don’t want to let them off the hook.”- ‘Maximum pressure’ playbook -Aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump said sending notices would be much easier than “sitting down and working 15 different things… this is what you have to pay, if you want to do business (with) the United States.”Bessent pushed back at CNN host Dana Bash’s assertion the administration was using threats rather than negotiations, and denied that Trump was setting a new deadline with the August 1 date.”It’s not a new deadline. We are saying, this is when it’s happening. If you want to speed things up, have at it. If you want to go back to the old rate, that’s your choice,” he said.He said the playbook was to apply “maximum pressure” and cited the European Union as an example, saying they are “making very good progress” after a slow start.EU and US negotiators are holding talks over the weekend, and France’s finance minister said Saturday he hoped they could strike a deal this weekend.Other countries were still expressing unease, however.Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday he “won’t easily compromise” in trade talks with Washington.And BRICS leaders of fast-growing economies meeting in Rio de Janeiro raised “serious concerns” that the “indiscriminate” import tariffs were illegal and risked hurting global trade.When probed about worries that steep levies could feed into broader US inflation, Bessent said there was a difference between “inflation and one-time price adjustments.””Inflation is a generalized monetary phenomenon. We’re not going to see that. And thus far, we haven’t even seen the one-time price adjustments,” Bessent told Fox News Sunday.bur-st-aks-sla/aha

US tariffs will kick in on August 1 if trading partners from Taiwan to the European Union do not strike deals with Washington, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday. The rates will “boomerang back” to the sometimes very high levels that President Donald Trump had announced on April 2 — before he suspended the levies to allow for trade talks and set a July 9 deadline for agreements, Bessent told CNN.Bessent confirmed comments by Trump to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday in which he also cited a new deadline: “Well, I’ll probably start them on August 1. Well, that’s pretty early. Right?” The president said he had signed 12 letters to inform countries of hiked rates, like to be sent out on Monday. The tariffs were part of a broader announcement in April where Trump imposed a 10 percent duty on goods from almost all trading partners, with a plan to step up these rates for a select group within days.But he swiftly paused the hikes until July 9, allowing for trade talks to take place.Countries have been pushing to strike deals that would help them avoid these elevated duties.So far, the Trump administration has unveiled deals with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, while Washington and Beijing agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high levies on each other’s products.Bessent said the administration was “close to several deals.””I would expect to see several big announcements over the next couple of days,” he said.But he would not say which countries he was referring to, adding: “I don’t want to let them off the hook.”- ‘Maximum pressure’ playbook -Aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump said sending notices would be much easier than “sitting down and working 15 different things… this is what you have to pay, if you want to do business (with) the United States.”Bessent pushed back at CNN host Dana Bash’s assertion the administration was using threats rather than negotiations, and denied that Trump was setting a new deadline with the August 1 date.”It’s not a new deadline. We are saying, this is when it’s happening. If you want to speed things up, have at it. If you want to go back to the old rate, that’s your choice,” he said.He said the playbook was to apply “maximum pressure” and cited the European Union as an example, saying they are “making very good progress” after a slow start.EU and US negotiators are holding talks over the weekend, and France’s finance minister said Saturday he hoped they could strike a deal this weekend.Other countries were still expressing unease, however.Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday he “won’t easily compromise” in trade talks with Washington.And BRICS leaders of fast-growing economies meeting in Rio de Janeiro raised “serious concerns” that the “indiscriminate” import tariffs were illegal and risked hurting global trade.When probed about worries that steep levies could feed into broader US inflation, Bessent said there was a difference between “inflation and one-time price adjustments.””Inflation is a generalized monetary phenomenon. We’re not going to see that. And thus far, we haven’t even seen the one-time price adjustments,” Bessent told Fox News Sunday.

BRICS leaders descended on sunny Rio de Janeiro Sunday, but issued a dark warning that US President Donald Trump’s “indiscriminate” import tariffs risk hurting the global economy.The 11 emerging nations — including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — represent about half the world’s population and 40 percent of global economic output.The bloc is divided about much, but found common cause when it comes to the mercurial US leader and his stop-start tariff wars.The BRICS leaders voiced “serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures,” warning they are illegal and arbitrary, according to a final summit statement.In April, Trump threatened allies and rivals alike with a slew of punitive duties, but abruptly offered a reprieve in the face of a fierce market sell-off.Trump has warned they will again impose unilateral levies on partners unless they reach “deals” by August 1.The BRICS said such moves break world trade rules, threaten to further reduce global trade and were “affecting prospects for global economic development.”The summit declaration did not mention the United States or its president by name, but it is a clear political volley directed at the occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.The Peterson Institute for International Economics, a Washington think tank, estimates Trump’s tariffs could trim about two points off US GDP and hit economies from Mexico to the oil-rich Arabian Gulf. – No show -Conceived two decades ago as a forum for fast-growing economies, the BRICS have come to be seen as a Chinese-driven counterbalance to Western power. But as the group has expanded to include Iran, Indonesia and others, it has struggled to reach meaningful consensus on issues ranging from the Gaza war to reforming international institutions.  The political punch of this year’s summit has been depleted by the absence of China’s Xi Jinping, who is skipping the meeting for the first time in his 12 years as president.The Chinese leader is not be the only notable absentee. Russian President Vladimir Putin, charged with war crimes in Ukraine, is also opting to stay away, but participated via video link.He told counterparts that the influence of BRICS “continues to grow” and said the bloc had become a key player in global governance.Still, Xi’s no-show is a blow to BRICS and to host President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who wants Brazil to play a bigger role on the world stage.- War and peace -On Sunday he welcomed leaders to Rio’s stunning Guanabara Bay, telling them that multilateralism was under attack, while hitting out at NATO and Israel, among others.He accused the trans-Atlantic defense organization of fueling an international arms race through a pledge by members to spend five percent of GDP on defense.”It is always easier to invest in war than in peace,” he said, while accusing Israel of carrying out “genocide” in Gaza.Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, whose nation is still reeling from a 12-day conflict with Israel, is also skipping the meeting, but he was represented by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.Still, Iran won the diplomatic backing of its allies over Israel and the United States’ recent bombing of Iranian military, nuclear and other sites.Tehran’s allies condemned the strikes, and voiced “serious concern over deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure and peaceful nuclear facilities.”The United States, Israel and European nations accuse Iran of using a civilian nuclear program as cover to create a nuclear bomb. The BRICS bloc did not explicitly mention Israel or the United States in the condemnation of the recent attacks, in a concession to members such as hosts Brazil who also enjoy close ties with Western nations.The 2026 BRICS summit is set to be hosted by India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the gathering.

US tariffs will kick in on August 1 if trading partners from Taiwan to the European Union do not strike deals with Washington, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday. The rates will “boomerang back” to the sometimes very high levels which President Donald Trump had announced on April 2 — before he suspended the levies to allow for trade talks and set a July 9 deadline for agreement, Bessent told CNN.Bessent confirmed comments by Trump to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday in which he also cited a new deadline: “Well, I’ll probably start them on August 1. Well, that’s pretty early. Right?” The president said he had signed 12 letters to be sent out, likely on Monday. The tariffs were part of a broader announcement in April where Trump imposed a 10 percent duty on goods from almost all trading partners, with a plan to step up these rates for a select group within days.But he swiftly paused the hikes until July 9, allowing for trade talks to take place.Countries have been pushing to strike deals that would help them avoid these elevated duties.So far, the Trump administration has unveiled deals with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, while Washington and Beijing agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high levies on each other’s products.Bessent said the administration was “close to several deals.””I would expect to see several big announcements over the next couple of days,” he said.But he would not say which countries he was referring to, adding: “I don’t want to let them off the hook.”As his July 9 deadline approaches, Trump has repeatedly said he plans to inform countries of US tariff rates by sending them letters.Aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump said sending notices would be much easier than “sitting down and working 15 different things… this is what you have to pay, if you want to do business (with) the United States.”Bessent pushed back at CNN host Dana Bash’s assertion the administration was using threats rather than negotiations, and denied that Trump was setting a new deadline with the August 1 date.”It’s not a new deadline. We are saying, this is when it’s happening. If you want to speed things up, have at it. If you want to go back to the old rate, that’s your choice,” he said.He said the playbook was to apply “maximum pressure” and cited the European Union as an example, saying they are “making very good progress” after a slow start.EU and US negotiators are holding talks over the weekend, and France’s finance minister said Saturday he hoped they could strike a deal this weekend.Other countries were still expressing unease, however.Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday he “won’t easily compromise” in trade talks with Washington.And BRICS leaders meeting in Rio de Janeiro are expected to decry the tariffs Sunday, saying they are illegal and risk hurting the global economy.

BRICS leaders descended on sunny Rio de Janeiro Sunday, ready to issue a dark warning that US President Donald Trump’s “indiscriminate” import tariffs risk hurting the global economy.The 11 emerging nations — including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — represent about half the world’s population and 40 percent of global economic output.The bloc is divided about much, but has found common cause when it comes to the mercurial US leader and his stop-start tariff wars.The BRICS are set to voice “serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures,” warning they are illegal and arbitrary, according to a draft summit statement obtained by AFP.In April, Trump threatened allies and rivals alike with a slew of punitive duties, but abruptly offered a reprieve in the face of a fierce market sell-off.Trump and his Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, have warned they will again impose unilateral levies on partners unless they reach “deals” by August 1.The BRICS will warn that such moves break world trade rules, “threaten to further reduce global trade” and are “affecting the prospects for global economic development.”The draft summit declaration does not mention the United States or its president by name, but it is a clear political volley directed at the occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.The Peterson Institute for International Economics, a Washington think tank, estimates Trump’s tariffs could trim about two points off US GDP and hit economies from Mexico to the oil-rich Arabian Gulf. – No show -Conceived two decades ago as a forum for fast-growing economies, the BRICS have come to be seen as a Chinese-driven counterbalance to Western power. But as the group has expanded to include Iran, Indonesia and others, it has struggled to reach meaningful consensus on issues ranging from the Gaza war to reforming international institutions.  The political punch of this year’s summit has been depleted by the absence of China’s Xi Jinping, who is skipping the meeting for the first time in his 12 years as president.The Chinese leader will not be the only notable absentee. War crime-indicted Russian President Vladimir Putin is also opting to stay away, but participated via video link.He told counterparts that the influence of BRICS “continues to grow” and said the bloc had become a key player in global governance.Still, Xi’s no-show is a blow to BRICS and to host President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who wants Brazil to play a bigger role on the world stage.On Sunday he welcomed leaders to Rio’s stunning Guanabara Bay, telling them that multilateralism was under attack, while hitting out at NATO and Israel, among others.He accused the trans-Atlantic defense organization of fueling an international arms race through a pledge by members to spend five percent of GDP on defense.”It is always easier to invest in war than in peace,” he said, while accusing Israel of carrying out a “genocide” in Gaza.Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, whose nation is still reeling from a 12-day conflict with Israel, is also skipping the meeting, but he was represented by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.A source familiar with summit negotiations said Iran had sought a tougher condemnation of Israel and the United States over their recent bombing of Iranian military, nuclear and other sites. But one diplomatic source said the text would give the “same message” that BRICS delivered last month.Then Tehran’s allies expressed “grave concern” about strikes against Iran, but did not explicitly mention Israel or the United States. 

Sipping green tea in his garden of roses, ex-communist party official Nguyen Van Cuong says he is “jobless but happy” after Vietnam cut 80,000 state roles this week.But fretting at home after leaving public employment once considered a job-for-life, Nguyen Thi Thu told AFP she feels “empty” over a future that is no longer certain.Vietnam is in the midst of a dramatic remaking of its state apparatus, with 100,000 positions slated to be scrapped as Hanoi seeks to streamline bureaucracy and boost the economy.On Monday, 80,000 roles were slashed as most of the Southeast Asian nation’s provinces and cities were merged.Feelings are mixed among newly unemployed apparatchiks — communist party officials whose jobs were once guaranteed.”It’s really a waste for the state to lose one like myself,” said 56-year-old Cuong, who served in Bac Giang province outside Hanoi. Bac Giang was merged into a neighbouring province’s administration.The government said those caught in the overhaul would either be made redundant or offered early retirement.Cuong told AFP he could have remained in his post — or even been promoted — but chose to accept a $75,000 payoff for his remaining six years after a 30-year state career.”It’s time to rid myself of so much complexity in state politics,” he said.The mass reorganisation overseen by Vietnam’s top leader To Lam echoes steps taken by US President Donald Trump and Argentine leader Javier Milei to take an axe to government spending towards “efficiency”.- ‘Don’t know what’s next’ -Former district-level secretary Thu admits she may not have been able to manage the burdens of the job as management prioritised performance.The 50-year-old felt she had no option but to resign when her office was relocated to the Mekong delta province of An Giang, more than 70 kilometres (44 miles) from her home.”I resigned, not because I wanted to quit my job,” Thu said. “It’s better to resign rather than waiting for a dismissal order.”Vietnam — a global manufacturing hub — recorded economic growth of 7.1 percent last year and is aiming for eight percent this year as it vies for “middle-income country” status by 2030.But the country is facing headwinds from key trade partner the United States.Trump threatened a 46 percent tariff before settling on a 20 percent rate in a deal announced on Wednesday — a levy five times the rate before he took office the second time.Vietnam’s deputy finance minister said the new administrative structure would bring “strong scale to connect strong business and economic infrastructure” and create “greater socio-economic development”.Lam, the Communist Party general secretary, said Monday that “the decision to reshape the nation is a historical landmark with strategic meaning” aiming “to continue our path towards a socialist country… for people’s happiness”.But for Thu, the way forward is now unclear.”I don’t know what to do next,” she said.Scrolling carefree on his phone and chatting with friends online, Cuong said he had few regrets over his voluntary redundancy.He feels like Vietnam may be the one missing out on what he has to offer.”I could still contribute more to the state sector,” he said.

BRICS leaders meeting in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday are expected to decry US President Donald Trump’s “indiscriminate” trade tariffs, saying they are illegal and risk hurting the global economy. Emerging nations, which represent about half the world’s population and 40 percent of global economic output, have united over “serious concerns” about US import tariffs, according to a draft summit statement obtained by AFP on Saturday.Since coming to office in January, Trump has threatened allies and rivals alike with a slew of punitive duties.His latest salvo comes in the form of letters informing trading partners of new tariff rates that will soon enter into force.The draft summit declaration does not mention the United States or its president by name, and could yet be amended by leaders gathering for talks Sunday and Monday.But it is a clear political shot directed at Washington from 11 emerging nations, including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. “We voice serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures which distort trade and are inconsistent with WTO (World Trade Organization) rules,” the draft text says. It warns that such measures “threaten to further reduce global trade” and are “affecting the prospects for global economic development.”- Xi no show -Conceived two decades ago as a forum for fast-growing economies, the BRICS have come to be seen as a Chinese-driven counterbalance to Western power. But the summit’s political punch will be depleted by the absence of China’s Xi Jinping, who is skipping the annual meeting for the first time in his 12 years as president.That absence has prompted fevered speculation in some quarters.”The simplest explanation may hold the most explanatory power. Xi recently hosted Lula in Beijing,” said Ryan Hass, a former China director at the US National Security Council who is now with the Brookings Institution think tank.The Chinese leader will not be the only notable absentee. War crime-indicted Russian President Vladimir Putin is also opting to stay away, but will participate via video link, according to the Kremlin.Hass said Putin’s non-attendance and the fact that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be a guest of honor in Brazil could also be factors in Xi’s absence.”Xi does not want to appear upstaged by Modi,” who will receive a state lunch, he said.”I expect Xi’s decision to delegate attendance to Premier Li (Qiang) rests amidst these factors.”Still, the Xi no-show is a blow to host President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who wants Brazil to play a bigger role on the world stage.In the year to November 2025, Brazil will have hosted a G20 summit, a BRICS summit, and COP30 international climate talks, all before heading into fiercely contested presidential elections next year, in which he is expected to run.Lula warmly welcomed leaders and dignitaries on Saturday, including China’s Premier Li Qiang, as the leftist president hosted a pre-summit business forum in Rio.”Faced with the resurgence of protectionism, it is up to emerging countries to defend the multilateral trade regime and reform the international financial architecture,” Lula told the event.Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, whose nation is still reeling from a 12-day conflict with Israel, is also skipping the meeting and will be represented by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.A source familiar with the negotiations said Iran had sought a tougher condemnation of Israel and the United States over their recent bombing of Iranian military, nuclear and other sites. But one diplomatic source said the text would give the “same message” that BRICS delivered last month.Then Iran’s allies expressed “grave concern” about strikes against Iran, but did not explicitly mention Israel or the United States. Artificial intelligence and health will also be on the agenda at the summit.Original members of the bloc Brazil, Russia, India, and China have been joined by South Africa and, more recently, Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Indonesia.

Thousands of local tourists poured into China’s first-ever Legoland as it opened its gates in Shanghai on Saturday, the latest theme park hoping to capitalise on a domestic tourism boom.The Chinese branch of the British-owned theme park franchise is the biggest Legoland in the world.It drew in early customers who flocked to attractions including a miniature train ride and a dragon-themed rollercoaster.”I personally love to play with Lego blocks and we have many sets at home… so I wanted to come to Legoland at the earliest opportunity,” said Shi, a 35-year-old resident of nearby city Hangzhou, who was visiting the park with his wife and child.Despite the Chinese economy’s sluggish growth in recent years, domestic tourist spending grew 18.6 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the previous year, according to statistics.”Ever since the pandemic, I’ve made very few trips abroad,” said Shi, adding his family now travels to theme parks around China “many times a year”.Eager Lego fans rushed into the park as soon as it opened, wearing themed shirts and waving branded flags as they enjoyed the 318,000-square-metre (78.5-acre) compound in scorching temperatures.Beijing has announced subsidies intended to make travelling within the country more affordable for Chinese citizens, and is pushing local governments to heavily market their attractions on social media.Companies have taken note of the wider local tourism boom and stepped up their plans in China.A new “Spider-Man” attraction at Shanghai Disneyland broke ground in May, while Warner Brothers is set to open a Harry Potter experience in Shanghai by 2027.Toy giant Hasbro said this week its giant Peppa Pig park in the city was now “in the phase of creative design”.Chinese collectable toy maker Pop Mart has also opened an attraction in Beijing featuring life-sized versions of its popular Labubu toys.”The various provinces are putting a lot of effort into expanding their tourism industries, and all of them have special attractions,” said Xu, a 34-year-old parent visiting Legoland on Saturday with his children.But profitability remains a problem, especially for local companies with less brand recognition.As of late 2024, around 40 percent of parks were still failing to turn a profit, according to state media reports.Yet analysts point to a growing population of retirees and job market changes as key factors pushing more locals to visit domestic attractions.”The labour market is turning more flexible,” said Ernan Cui, China consumer analyst at Gavekal Research.”More people have leisure time to travel around.”