South Korea's current account surplus widened in May from a month earlier, despite falling exports, due mainly to falling global oil prices and an increase in dividend income, central bank data showed on Friday.

The country's current account surplus reached US$10.14 billion in May, following a surplus of $5.7 billion in April, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea, reports news agency.

It marked the 25th consecutive month of a current account surplus, as South Korea has reported a monthly surplus since May 2023.

In terms of May figures, it was the third largest on record, following $11.31 billion of surplus in 2021 and $10.49 billion reported in 2016.

US President Donald Trump hailed the passage of the "One Big Beautiful Bill", describing it as the beginning of America’s “new Golden Age,” and announcing a signing celebration at the White House on Friday evening.

“The Republicans in the House of Representatives have just passed the “ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT.” Our Party is UNITED like never before, and our Country is “hot.” We are going to have a Signing Celebration at the White House tomorrow, at 4 P.M. EST. All Congressmen/women and Senators are invited. Together, we will celebrate our Nation’s Independence and the beginning of our new Golden Age,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

At least one person was killed and 14 others injured when Houthi militants targeted a gas station with drones in Yemen's southwestern province of Taiz on Thursday, a government official said.

The attack occurred at dawn when Houthi militants bombed fuel tanks at the Qadasi gas station located northeast of Taiz city, the local official said on condition of anonymity.

He added that the powerful explosion killed one civilian and wounded more than 14 others, with some in critical condition. All injured persons were transported to a nearby public hospital for treatment.

An Australian man in his 50s has died after being bitten by an “extremely rare” bat virus that caused rabies-like infection, according to health officials on Thursday.

The man from northern New South Wales (NSW) was bitten by Australian bat lyssavirus -- a close relative of the rabies virus -- “several” months ago, as per a statement from NSW Health. Although he received treatment at the time, it proved to be ineffective.

China's Ministry of Water Resources on Thursday activated a Level-IV emergency response to flooding in the northwest Qinghai Province amid a new round of heavy rainfall.

According to forecasts, heavy rainfall is expected in eastern and southern Qinghai from Thursday to Saturday. As a result, significant rises in water levels are anticipated in the upper main stream and tributaries of the Yellow River in the province, with some small and medium-sized rivers in heavily affected areas potentially experiencing floods exceeding warning levels.

Local authorities have been urged to enhance flood monitoring and early warning, ensure effective flood control for rivers, and protect people's lives and property.

Based on 24-hour rainfall forecasts, the ministry has issued alerts for 10 other provincial-level regions, including Hebei, Liaoning and Hainan, urging them to take precautions and prepare for heavy rainfall.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) on Thursday said that they have detained a 23-year-old Russian woman in St. Petersburg for allegedly preparing a terrorist attack ordered by the Ukrainian Special Services.

The FSB mentioned that it has "stopped the activities of a Russian citizen born in 2002 who was involved in preparing a terrorist act on orders from Ukrainian special services."

The security service found that the woman detained has had "proactively entrenched contact" with a Ukrainian Special Services representative across WhatsApp and Telegram messengers (owned by Meta, whose activities are recognised as extremist in Russia), reported TASS news agency, citing the FSB report.

The woman, according to the FSB, was planning to become a citizen in one of the European Union (EU) countries. Hence, she was found stating her readiness to be a "part of sabotage and terrorist activities for the sake of leaving" Russia.

South Korea's exports of agricultural and food products climbed to a record high in the first half on the growing popularity of Korean culture, the agriculture ministry said on Thursday.

The combined outbound shipments of agricultural and food items amounted to $6.67 billion in the January-June period, up 7.1 percent from $6.22 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, reports news agency.

It marked the highest first-half figure on record, the ministry added.

By item, exports of instant noodles, or ramyeon in Korean, surged 24 percent on-year to $731.7 million over the cited period and shipments of sauce products climbed 18.4 percent to $228.4 million, while ice cream exports rose 23.1 percent to $65.5 million.

As the US reciprocal tariffs deadline looms, hectic parleys are currently underway in Washington, DC, between officials of India and the US on finalising the proposed interim trade deal in the next couple of days.

While New Delhi is seeking greater market access for its labour-intensive goods such as garments, footwear, and leather — which are major job creators — Washington wants duty concessions for its agricultural and daily products, according to officials.

The Indian trade negotiators have extended their stay in US, signalling a last-minute push to iron out key differences. They have maintained that broader tariff cuts, especially on high-employment goods, are needed to reach the goal of doubling bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.

President Lee Jae Myung said on Thursday the government has made utmost efforts on tariff negotiations with the United States, but he can't say whether the talks could be concluded by July 8, a deadline set by US President Donald Trump.

Lee made the remark during the press conference marking his first month in office, as Seoul and Washington continue talks to reduce the 25 percent reciprocal tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, reports news agency.

South Korea is "doing our best" for tariff talks with the U.S., but Lee said, "At this point, it is difficult to say with certainty whether they can be concluded by July 8."

South Korea's foreign reserves rebounded in June from the lowest level in five years, central bank data showed on Thursday.

The country's foreign reserves stood at US$410.2 billion as of end-June, up $5.61 billion from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the largest amount since January when the foreign reserves amounted to $411.01 billion.

The figure had declined for two consecutive months since April, reaching the lowest level since April 2020, when foreign reserves stood at $403.98 billion, reports news agency.

Last month's increase was attributed to a rise in the U.S. dollar-converted value of foreign currency assets denominated in other currencies due to a weaker dollar, as well as higher investment returns, the BOK said.