Australia's S&P/ASX 200 opened 125.30 points higher (+1.45%) at 8,758.50 on Friday, June 12.

WHO expert says the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo still has many "blind spots" in some areas and surveillance needs strengthening.

India is prepared to widen this year’s budget deficit to 4.8% of GDP, up 50 bps from the 4.3% target set in February, a government official said. Higher energy subsidy costs linked to the Iran war have strained public finances and made meeting the February target unlikely — the first miss since the pandemic. The finance ministry has told rating agencies any fiscal deterioration reflects external uncertainty rather than a change in fiscal discipline. India last missed its budget target in FY2020-21, when the deficit rose to 9.2% of GDP versus a 3.5% target; the government has since pursued fiscal consolidation. Authorities say they will reassess the fiscal outlook later this year as non-tax receipts and subsidy needs become clearer, and are evaluating departmental spending cuts to contain the deficit. The scale of cuts will hinge largely on fertilizer prices; falling global fertilizer prices would lower subsidy bills and reduce the need for broad spending curbs.