Chinese leader welcomed US President with a handshake for a superpower summit
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A vessel reportedly operating as a “floating armoury” in the Gulf of Oman has been seized by Iranian military forces, according to maritime risk management company Vanguard.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said the ship is now “bound for Iranian territorial waters.”
The vessel — identified by maritime risk consultancy Vanguard as the Honduras-flagged Hui Chuan — was last tracked transmitting its Automatic Identification System (AIS) signal on Wednesday, when it was located roughly 70km (about 40 miles) north-east of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, BBC reported.
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a "good" meeting in Beijing on Friday, the White House said. ''The two sides discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation, including expanding market access for American businesses into China and increasing Chinese investment in US indsutries," the White House said in a statement. According to the statement, the two sides agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to support the free flow of energy. Both countries, it added, agreed that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.
President Donald Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged not to provide military equipment to Iran and voiced support for keeping the Strait of Hormuz open, a notable signal as Washington, Beijing and Gulf capitals navigate the war’s fallout. China has long been one of Iran’s most important economic partners, especially as a buyer of Iranian oil, but Beijing has also been trying to protect its broader interests in the Gulf and keep shipping lanes open. That balancing act has grown more visible in recent weeks, with Xi publicly urging that Hormuz remain open for normal passage and Chinese officials calling for de-escalation.
As US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met in Beijing on Thursday, a group of world leaders restated their call for the Strait of Hormuz to return to normal operations.
In a statement, the leaders affirmed their “commitment to using collective diplomatic, economic, and military capabilities to support freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.”
“Navigation must be free, as per the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and international law,” the statement read. It pledged support for “an independent and strictly defensive multinational military mission” to achieve that goal, including by conducting “mine clearance operations.”
The message came from 26 countries, including Britain, France, Bahrain, Canada, Germany, Japan, Qatar and South Korea.
Hezbollah on Thursday said it targeted Israeli troops in northern Israel with a drone, as Lebanon and Israel were holding a new round of direct talks in Washington.
In a statement, the group said it "targeted a gathering of Israeli enemy army soldiers at the Rosh HaNikra site" near the border with Lebanon with a drone.
The Israeli military had earlier said that "several Israeli civilians were injured and evacuated to receive medical treatment" after "an explosive drone that was launched by the Hezbollah terrorist organisation fell within Israeli territory, near the Israel-Lebanon border". The Galilee Medical Center said the wounded were in Rosh HaNikra.
US President Donald Trump said that Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to order 200 Boeing jets, describing the move as a commitment from the Chinese leader.
“One thing he agreed to today is he is going to order 200 jets,” Trump said during a clip of an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity that was quoted by CNN.
“Boeing,” Trump said, “200 big ones,” adding, “That’s a lot of jobs.”
Boeing shares fell about four percent, suggesting investors had expected a bigger order.
The International Monetary Fund warned on Thursday that continuing disruptions due to the Iran war meant its global economic outlook was moving towards an "adverse" scenario, with growth pared down and greater risks to inflation.
Last month, the multilateral lender's World Economic Outlook predicted global growth would drop to 3.1 per cent in 2026 in its "reference" scenario, but warned of a bleaker outlook if the war were to drag on.
In the "adverse" scenario, where oil prices remain higher for longer, inflation expectations become less stable and financial conditions tighten, growth would slow to 2.5 per cent, the Fund said at the time.
On Thursday, the Fund's chief spokesperson said the global economy was headed towards this less auspicious situation.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday said President Xi Jinping had offered China's help to open the Strait of Hormuz and pledged not to send military equipment to aid Iran in its war against the US and Israel.
"He said he's not going to give military equipment... he said that strongly," Trump told the "Hannity" show on Fox News, after the two leaders met in Beijing.
"He'd like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said 'if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help,'" Trump added.
The US policy on Taiwan is “unchanged,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said following a meeting between top US and Chinese officials in Beijing, reported CNN.
The top US diplomat said China “always” raises the matter, and “we always make clear our position.”
“From our perspective, any forced change in the status quo in the situation would be bad for both countries,” Rubio said in an interview with NBC News in Beijing.
Rising gas prices drove up US consumer spending in April even as overall consumption slowed, according to official data released Thursday.
Retail sales totaled $757.1 billion in the United States in April, up 0.5 percent from the previous month and 4.9 per cent year-on-year.
