The Ministry of Water Resources said at a special meeting on the morning of June 18 that China is expected to see two rounds of heavy rainfall over the next 10 days. Rainfall will raise water levels on the Yangtze mainstem in the middle and lower reaches, in the Dongting Lake system (Xiang River) and the Poyang Lake system (Gan River), and on the Huaihe River upper and middle reaches and its tributaries. The ministry ordered strengthened flood defenses for small- and medium-sized rivers.

JP Morgan Asset Management strategist Karen Ward says long-standing investor aversion to European equities now presents a buy opportunity. With oil back near early-war levels and AI-led gains lifting US and Asian markets, European stocks look relatively cheap. Valuation discounts versus the US have narrowed since last month as markets increasingly price a resolution to the conflict. Oil fell further on Thursday after US President Trump signed an interim agreement to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Ward adds that if the Iran dispute recedes and a final deal lifts oil, Europe’s upside should be released as investors rotate away from US assets—fearing an AI peak—into international markets.

European aviation regulator says it has made good progress approving operation of Boeing 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10.