Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-Cha, Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, U.S. President Donald Trump, Philippine's President Rodrigo Duterte and Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong pose for a family photo during the ASEAN-US 40th Anniversary commemorative Summit in Manila, Philippines November 13, 2017. REUTERS/Manan Vatsyayana/

Middle East

 

More than 300 people were killed in Iran when a magnitude 7.3 earthquake jolted the country, state media said, and rescuers were searching for dozens trapped under rubble in the mountainous area. At least six have died in Iraq as well. 

 

From the moment Saad al-Hariri’s plane touched down in Saudi Arabia on Friday Nov. 3, he was in for a surprise. There was no line-up of Saudi princes or ministry officials, as would typically greet a prime minister on an official visit to King Salman, sources told Reuters. Read the exclusive.

 

Iran said that it does not interfere in Lebanon and that comments by Saad al-Hariri, who resigned as Lebanese prime minister nine days ago, gave hope he would soon return to his country, state TV reported. 

 

Asia

 

U.S. President Donald Trump said he had a “great relationship” with his Philippine counterpart, Rodrigo Duterte, while a White House official said human rights got only a brief mention when the two met on the sidelines of an Asian summit. 

 

Southeast Asian nations will not take a relative calm in the dispute over the South China Sea for granted, according to a draft of a statement to be issued during a summit meeting in Manila. 

 

A North Korean soldier defected to the South after being shot and wounded by the North Korean military, South Korea said. 

 

Business

 

Japan will delay a decision to develop a new advanced fighter jet, four sources said, as officials splash out on new U.S. equipment such as ballistic missile interceptors and F-35 stealth planes. Any delay to the new fighter, known as the F-3, will raise a question mark over the future of what could be one of the world’s most lucrative upcoming military contracts, estimated at more than $40 billion to develop and deploy. Read the exclusive.

 

Uber’s warring board members have struck a peace deal that allows a multibillion-dollar investment by SoftBank to proceed, and which would resolve a legal battle between former Chief Executive Travis Kalanick and a prominent shareholder. 

 

JD.com, China’s e-commerce behemoth, said that sales for Singles’ Day - and its run-up - reached 127.1 billion yuan ($19.14 billion), up 50 percent from a year ago. 

 

 

A farmer spreads red chili to dry at a village in Huaibei, Anhui province, China November 10, 2017. REUTERS/

 

Uncertainty over a U.S. tax reform deal pushed world stock markets further away from recent record highs, while Britain’s pound fell on growing concern about the future of Prime Minister Theresa May. 

 

U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm is making preparations to reject rival Broadcom’s $103 billion bid as early as this week, four people familiar with the matter said, setting the stage for one of the biggest-ever takeover battles. 

 

It is hard to imagine the Dow Jones Industrial Average without General Electric. The U.S. industrial conglomerate’s stock is the lone original component of the venerable blue-chip index that debuted in 1896. But GE's dwindling share price and the likelihood that its new chief executive will dramatically slim down its sprawling operations is leading some index-watchers to consider the possibility of the company losing its membership in the elite 30-stock Dow. 

 

U.S.

 

A year after Trump was elected president on a promise to revive the ailing U.S. coal industry, the sector’s long-term prospects for growth and hiring remain as bleak as ever. A Reuters review of mining data shows an industry that has seen only modest gains in jobs and production this year - much of it from a temporary uptick in foreign demand for U.S. coal rather than presidential policy changes. Read more in the “Trump Effect” series. 

 

Joe Holcombe and his wife, Claryce, lost eight members of their family in the Texas church shooting last Sunday, including their son, grandchildren, a pregnant granddaughter-in-law and a great-granddaughter who was still a toddler. But they are serene. 

 

Cryptocurrency

 

 

Europe’s top markets regulator has warned investors about the pitfalls of buying newly issued crypto coins, an experimental and unregulated form of online crowd funding particularly used by start-up businesses. 

 

For most investors around the world, bitcoin is a volatile and highly speculative bet. For Zimbabweans, however, the cryptocurrency seems to offer rare protection from the onset of hyperinflation and financial implosion. 

 

EU

 

More than half of Spanish voters favor an early national election, a survey showed, as support waned for a minority government embroiled in the country’s worst political crisis in decades. 

 

France, Germany and 20 other EU governments are set to sign a defense pact they hope marks a new era of European military integration to cement unity after Britain’s decision to quit the bloc. 

 

Breakingviews - Britain brings the gloom to global defence party.

 

Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May will come under pressure from business leaders to speed up negotiations with the European Union amid concerns Britain may crash out of the world’s biggest trading bloc without a deal. 

 

Commentary

 

Between troubled Brexit negotiations and scandals involving sexual harassment, secret meetings, political donors and the royal family's taxes, the British government is melting down, writes John Lloyd. "The real question here is whether the May government can survive. And what happens if it can’t?"