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Daily Briefing

China replaces its foreign minister after a mysterious absence, NatWest CEO resigns after admitting to a "serious error" in the Nigel Farage row, and the Federal Reserve will be the first in a string of central banks to announce interest rate decisions this week.

Plus, citizen divers restore seagrass to fight climate change in the Baltic Sea.

By Edson Caldas

Today's Top News

Wang Yi attends a trilateral meeting with the foreign ministers from Indonesia and Russia in Jakarta, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana

DIPLOMACY

China's decision to reappoint its top diplomat Wang Yi as foreign minister one month after former rising star Qin Gang disappeared from public view means Washington will be dealing with a familiar face. But Wang's return to the post is unlikely to alter the trajectory of a troubled bilateral relationship.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned of China's "problematic behavior" during a visit to the Pacific island nation of Tonga, citing Beijing's militarization of the South China Sea and what he called economic coercion. China's growing presence in the region has fueled concern in the US and Australia.
After years of pandemic isolation, North Korea is hosting Chinese and Russian delegations for 70th anniversary commemorations of the Korean War and the struggle against the US and its allies. The guests are expected to be presented with one of North Korea's signature events: a massive military parade.

ELSEWHERE

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has taken a hit in opinion polls from a judicial overhaul by his government that has triggered his gravest domestic crisis. Surveys show that if an election was held now, the number of seats held by his coalition in the 120-seat Knesset parliament would fall from 64 to 52 or 53.
Russian air strikes on Ukrainian grain facilities this week threaten a vital river route for Kyiv's exports, as Moscow seeks to tighten the noose around a key sector of the economy. Meanwhile, Ukraine's allies have committed to allocate $244 million for the country's humanitarian demining needs.
One person died and several others were hurt when a fire broke out on a cargo ship carrying cars off the northern tip of Netherlands, forcing several crew members to jump overboard. An electric car was the suspected source of the blaze, a coastguard spokesperson said, adding that the ship was still burning.
The number of Japanese people has decreased at the fastest pace ever while the number of foreign residents has risen to a record. Government data showed that Japanese society is aging across the country and suggests that foreigners are playing an ever bigger role in making up for the shrinking population.

Business & Markets

The Fed is expected to raise interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, marking the 11th hike in the US central bank's past 12 policy meetings. How is it handing the Taylor Swift effect on spending? Howard Schneider unpacks the Fed vs Swiftonomics on the Reuters World News daily podcast.
China's leadership pledged at a key Communist Party meeting this week to support the economy through a "tortuous" post-pandemic recovery, but offered very little detail on specific measures, causing mixed feelings among investors and economists. Here are the key takeaways from the meeting.
NatWest CEO Alison Rose stepped down with immediate effect after she admitted to a "serious error of judgment" in discussing former Brexit party leader Nigel Farage's relationship with the bank with a BBC journalist. Farage called for further heads to roll in the wake of Rose's resignation.
Joe Lewis, owner of the Tottenham Hotspur soccer team, has been criminally charged in New York for orchestrating a "brazen" insider trading scheme. Prosecutors said Lewis exploited his access to corporate boardrooms by passing tips about companies in which he invested to other people.
Porsche has a plan to gradually electrify its car lineup so that electric vehicles make up 80% of sales by 2030, and it aims to make its iconic 911 the only internal-combustion engine model left standing, a top executive said. Sign up to the Auto File newsletter for more news on the industry.

The Wider Image

Angela Stevenson holds a bundle of seagrass shoots during a two-day citizen diver course in Maasholm, Northern Germany, July 2, 2023. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner

Just off the coast of Kiel in northern Germany, scuba divers use hand trowels to dig up emerald green seagrass shoots complete with roots from a dense underwater meadow. Back on land, they store the shoots in large cooling boxes, before heading out the next day to a barren area further north to replant them in circles.

They hope this work, part of a project that trains local citizens to restore seagrass in the Baltic Sea, can help tackle climate change. See our photo essay.

And Finally...

Shunnosuke Suga eats Almond tofu with beetle larvae at Take-Noko cafe in Tokyo, July 21, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

On a recent vacation in Tokyo, Takumi Yamamoto opted for a special lunch of cricket curry and silkworm sashimi, washed down with a water bug cider. The 26-year-old from Hyogo is one of scores of consumers who have taken an interest in entomophagy, or eating insects, as bugs slowly become a more viable food source.

Read more here: Silkworm sashimi, cricket curry on menu as bugs make a comeback in Japan

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