Egypt’s net international reserves reached a record $57.2 billion in August 2026. Compared to August 2025, the total reserves in August 2026 increased by $7.9638 billion from $49.2507 billion, representing an annual growth rate of approximately 16.2%. Egypt concluded December 2025 with net international reserves of $51.4516 billion. Consequently, reserves have grown by about $5.76 billion, or 11.2%, within the first eight months of 2026. Official monthly data reveal that the reserve totals have consistently risen each month since the beginning of the year, with positive developments extending through August.
Worsening air pollution triggered by regional peatland fires forced Malaysia to enact an emergency declaration in Sarawak’s Serian district as the Air Pollutant Index breached the extreme 500 mark. Reaching a peak API reading of 519, the hazardous conditions led educational and health administrators to suspend classes across 647 schools to protect students and staff. Federal authorities are coordinating emergency mitigation measures, including cloud-seeding sorties and mask distributions, as agricultural fires burning across neighboring Indonesian Kalimantan continue to transport thick smoke plumes across shared maritime borders.
Health
The World Health Organization has called for a major expansion of the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said health teams still have not identified every chain of transmission. Congo had recorded 6,250 confirmed cases and 3,039 deaths as of Sept. 1, according to the latest government figures. The Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak now affects 60 health zones across six provinces.
Travel
On Friday, low-cost airline Air Arabia announced a significant enhancement of its Southeast Asian route offerings, notably boosting flight frequencies between the United Arab Emirates and Thailand. Beginning October 25, 2026, the airline will operate a fourth non-stop service daily connecting Sharjah International Airport with Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. This new schedule increases the carrier’s weekly non-stop flights on the Sharjah-Bangkok route to 28, providing greater flexibility for both leisure and business travelers. To meet the rising demand for regional travel, Air Arabia is expanding its Bangkok service to four daily flights from Sharjah.
Technology
Japan expands AI-powered checks to detect investment fraud through consumer complaint data. The AI system will analyze roughly 900,000 consultation records annually within Japan’s national consumer complaint database, PIO-NET. It will compare incoming complaints to historical contexts and key phrases from previous cases, seeking solicitation tactics, business models, and early signals of collapse. Additionally, it can identify recurring patterns among multiple operators, even if a complaint does not explicitly mention confirmed financial losses.