International crude oil prices rose by more than $1 a barrel on Friday as fresh tanker attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and stalled peace talks between the United States and Iran heightened supply concerns. Brent crude gained $1.45, or 1.67%, to $88.52 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate rose $1.15, or 1.42%, to $82.40 a barrel.

For the week, Brent was on track to rise about 6%, while WTI was heading for a gain of about 5.4%. On August 14, two UAE oil tankers were hit by drones. No casualties were reported, but both vessels were damaged. The United Arab Emirates blamed Iran for the attack.

Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen well below normal levels, increasing concerns over international oil supplies. Analyst Andrew Lipow said the situation could become more serious if transit restrictions persist, noting that about 20% of global oil supplies are transported through the strategic waterway. The strait’s security situation, progress in US-Iran talks and tanker movements are expected to influence the market’s next direction.

Major wildfires spread across Europe amid record heat, with France detaining 474 people since July 1 over fire incidents, the Interior Ministry said Friday. The European Union described wildfire conditions in several parts of the continent as “extremely extreme.” Fires have also affected Croatia, Germany, Spain, Greece and the United Kingdom, burning homes and prompting evacuations of residents and tourists.

French authorities said 183 of those detained were minors, and about 70 percent were suspected of deliberately starting fires; the remainder faced allegations of unintentionally causing them. More than 525 people were evacuated from Luglon in the Landes department, where a new blaze burned about 1,100 hectares of dry pine forest in less than 24 hours. Around 500 firefighters and six water-dropping aircraft were deployed.

In western Germany, more than 2,000 people left homes near the Huertgen forest fire, while unexploded Second World War ammunition hindered firefighting. Spain evacuated people from 16 towns and villages and moved the remains of three 11th-century Aragon kings from a monastery. Greece evacuated about 500 tourists by small boats. Scientists said climate change is making extreme weather more frequent and intense, increasing wildfire risk through dry soils, heat and strong winds.

Sugarcane harvesting is in full swing in Barura upazila of Cumilla, where farmers report strong yields and higher market prices than last year. The report, published on August 14, 2026, says growers are busy cutting and marketing cane, while interest in cultivation is increasing because farmers see the crop as comparatively profitable with lower costs.

Sugarcane is widely cultivated in Shilmuri North and South, Bhabanipur, Aganagar, Jhalam and Barura municipality. About 350 farmers have planted cane on roughly 147 hectares this season, with a production target of 15,000 to 16,000 metric tonnes. BSR I-47, BSR I-43 and BSR I-46 are the main varieties, with BSR I-47, also known locally as CU-208, most widely grown because of its sweetness and taste.

Wholesale prices now range from Tk65 to Tk70 per cane, while retail prices reach Tk90 to Tk100, depending on size and quality. Upazila agriculture officer Md Zahidul Islam said no special facilities are provided for cane farming, but farmers receive advice on proper use of organic fertilizer and pesticides.

Rising fuel prices linked to the Iran war are increasing demand for electric trucks across Asia and driving a sharp rise in Chinese exports, according to a report published on August 14, 2026. Use of electric trucks, from light vehicles to heavy trailers, is also growing rapidly in China, while domestic sales have increased in the world’s largest car market.

Pakistan-based outlet Dawn reported that in the four months after the United States and Israel began war against Iran in February, China’s exports of heavy electric trucks more than doubled year on year to 16,823 units. Nearly half of those shipments went to countries in South and Southeast Asia. Exports to South Asia rose more than fivefold, while shipments to Southeast Asia increased nearly threefold.

Higher fuel costs are offsetting the disadvantage of electric trucks’ relatively higher upfront purchase prices. The report said rising energy expenses are pushing countries across Asia toward electric transport more quickly. Chinese manufacturers are therefore focusing not only on their domestic market but also on selling electric trucks in newer markets across Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Summit LNG Terminal began supplying gas on Friday, August 14, starting at about 110 million cubic feet at 6:10 pm, the company said in an evening press release. The terminal expects to gradually raise deliveries and reach about 550 million cubic feet of gas, near full capacity, around 2 am on August 15.

Summit said the additional gas would help increase availability for industry, power generation and other customers. The company said the supply could also support economic activity and help reduce pressure on the country’s energy system.

The company said it is committed to delivering the maximum volume of gas while maintaining safe and reliable operations within the technical capabilities of the terminal and the national gas transmission system. Summit LNG described adequate and uninterrupted energy supply as important for industrial growth, employment and economic development in Bangladesh. It also said it would continue working closely with Petrobangla and the Bangladesh government to strengthen energy security and reduce gas shortages.

Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Afrozah Khanam Rita said skilled professionals have an important role in Bangladesh’s economic development and in establishing good governance. She made the remarks on Friday afternoon, August 14, at a reception for chartered accountants and cost and management accountants in Manikganj Sadar’s Gilond Munno Cafeteria.

Rita said chartered accountants and cost and management accountants could further strengthen the country’s economy through professional competence and integrity. She said her father, Harunar Rashid Khan Munno, worked for the country and its people with honesty and dedication. The minister said she was working while carrying those ideals and sought cooperation from the professionals.

FCA Md. Golam Nabi chaired the event, where FCA Abdul Matin, FCMA Jasimuddin, FCMA Yunus Ali and FCA Ekhlas Uddin spoke. Speakers emphasized improving professionals’ skills, ensuring transparency and accountability, and strengthening their contribution to the country’s economic progress. The minister was welcomed with flowers and presented with a commemorative crest at the beginning of the event. Chartered accountants and cost and management accountants from different levels of the district attended.

A severe LNG-related gas shortage has shut all five filling stations in Brahmanbaria for the past three days, disrupting CNG-powered transport and affecting commercial and residential consumers. Gas supply to the stations was fully halted after 11 a.m. on Wednesday, according to the report. The closures have reduced the number of CNG autorickshaws operating on roads and highways, leaving passengers facing long waits and higher fares.

Before the shutdown, Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Limited supplied the five stations with 50,000 cubic metres of gas daily, although demand was nearly twice that amount. For more than two weeks, gas pressure had remained at 3 to 4 PSI rather than the usual 15 PSI. Supplies were first restricted and then stopped completely as the shortage intensified.

Some autorickshaw drivers have switched to LPG cylinders, increasing operating costs and passenger fares. One passenger paid Tk70 for a trip normally priced at Tk40, while a driver said his fare rose from Tk50 to Tk90 after using LPG. A filling-station manager said supply might resume Sunday or Monday, but Bakhrabad Gas official Md Shafiqul Haque said no definite timeline was available.

Oil has spilled from the tanker Caroline Bezengi after it became stranded near Al-Kibliyah Island, about 50 kilometres off southern Oman’s coast, raising concerns over long-term environmental damage in the Gulf. The vessel, carrying more than 800,000 barrels of oil, was hit by an explosion near Yemen’s coast on June 8 before grounding in late June. Oil has begun reaching beaches along Oman’s mainland “Turtle Coast.”

Al-Kibliyah is part of Oman’s Halaniyat Islands nature reserve, home to wildlife including Socotra cormorants and humpback whales. Oman’s National Committee for Emergency Management said it was monitoring the incident and its effects. The government estimated that the oil spill covered about 400 square kilometres. The article also cited research estimating that the first 14 days of the Iran war produced more than 5 million tonnes of carbon-dioxide-equivalent emissions.

UK-based maritime risk management firm Ambrey has been hired to salvage the tanker and address the spill. It said an international operation involving rescue vessels, aircraft, specialists and more than 100 tonnes of equipment was under way. With support from the Royal Air Force of Oman, experts have boarded the tanker to assess conditions and stabilize the vessel and cargo. Ambrey said khareef-season weather was complicating operations.

State Minister for Public Administration and Food Abdul Bari called for extensive tree planting to address the effects of climate change and ensure a livable environment for future generations. He made the remarks on Friday afternoon, August 14, while inaugurating a programme to plant 5,000 saplings of different species in the Biler Ghat area of Khetlal upazila in Joypurhat.

Bari said trees could be planted in a planned manner beside government facilities, roads and river embankments. Such planting, he said, could protect the environment while also increasing public awareness. He stressed the need for a planned approach to confront the impacts of climate change.

The state minister said planting saplings alone would not be sufficient, and regular care and preservation of planted trees must be ensured. He also emphasized continuing such tree-planting programmes. The inauguration event involved a programme for planting a total of 5,000 saplings of various species in the Biler Ghat area.

At least eight people have died in flooding caused by record rainfall across broad areas east of Tokyo, Japan’s public broadcaster reported Friday. Heavy rain and severe storms struck Chiba Prefecture from Thursday through Friday. The Japan Meteorological Agency said Chiba City, the prefectural capital, recorded about 350 millimetres of rain in just 12 hours.

Chiba’s governor said at a Friday news conference that the rainfall was nearly three times the average precipitation for the entire month of August. It was the highest 12-hour rainfall recorded in the area since records began in 1976. From Thursday night until Friday morning, the weather agency issued its highest Level 5 heavy-rain warning for 22 municipalities in the prefecture.

The agency warned residents of unprecedented heavy rainfall and urged them to move quickly to safe locations. It was Japan’s first Level 5 warning since the warning system was revised earlier this year for greater clarity. Although the alert level was lowered Friday afternoon, rainfall was expected to continue. The downpour caused major disruption to electricity supplies and severely affected transport in several areas.

Unit 1 of the coal-fired Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant in Parbatipur, Dinajpur, has again shut down because of a mechanical fault. The problem emerged around 11 a.m. on Friday, halting generation from the unit at the plant, which has a total generation capacity of 525 megawatts.

Chief Engineer Abu Bakar Siddiq confirmed the shutdown and said work was under way to repair the mechanical fault and restart the unit quickly. Before it stopped, Unit 1 was supplying 50 megawatts of electricity to the national grid each day.

The same unit had previously stopped generating on July 31 because of a mechanical fault and was restarted on August 2 after repairs. At present, the plant’s Unit 3 is supplying 170 megawatts to the national grid. Unit 2 has remained shut since 2020.

National University has launched an effort to make its second-year undergraduate Applied ICT course more current, student-friendly and employment-oriented through improved resource materials and online content. Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr ASM Amanullah highlighted the initiative on 14 August 2026 at BRAC CDM in Savar, during the opening of a three-day “Resource Materials Finalization” workshop organized with technical support from UNICEF Bangladesh.

Amanullah said information and communication technology is closely connected to education, employment, research, innovation and daily life. He said students should receive learning they can use beyond the classroom. He called for final materials to reflect students’ diverse educational and technological capacities and realities across regions, using simple, fluent and accessible language to support inclusive learning opportunities.

On the workshop’s first day, participants reviewed the accuracy and student suitability of each resource-book chapter and topic, pedagogical approaches, practical application, and alignment with online content. Experts recommended revisions and refinements to make the material clearer and more practical. The resource book and online content are scheduled to be finalized over the following two days based on those views.

Scientists at Peking University in China report that melting Antarctic ice is continuously releasing toxic mercury into the ocean. The study, led by environmental scientist Chengzhen Zhou, was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers identified the concern while analysing sediment samples from the Antarctic Peninsula, an area they describe as among the fastest-melting parts of Antarctica due to environmental pollution.

Mercury is listed among the World Health Organization's 10 chemicals of major public-health concern and is toxic even at low levels. Scientists say fossil-fuel burning for industry and mining have sharply increased environmental mercury. Antarctic ice has long acted as a mercury sink, absorbing pollution from the environment, but greenhouse gases from the same industries are accelerating ice melt and releasing stored mercury. Mercury accumulation in the peninsula increased by 160 percent after the Industrial Revolution, the researchers said.

The study said melting ice increased mercury release onto land by 550 percent and atmosphere-to-ocean mercury exchange by 350 percent. Mercury discharge from the peninsula into open waters through currents rose by 400 percent. Researchers also observed rising mercury levels in Southern Ocean animals, often exceeding previous records.

US Central Command, or CENTCOM, has announced the formation of its first multinational, multi-domain attack-drone task force, named Task Force Falcon Strike. The announcement was reported on August 14, 2026, and concerns a new unit involving US forces and military personnel from regional partner countries.

CENTCOM said the task force will deploy one-way attack drones across several operational environments: on the sea surface, underwater and on land. The command described the unit as multinational and multi-domain, with participation by military members from the United States alongside regional partners.

The announcement comes nine months after the establishment of Task Force Scorpion Strike, described as the first specialized US one-way attack-drone squadron in the Middle East. CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper said Falcon Strike would expand on Scorpion Strike’s success amid innovation among regional allies and partners. He added that integrating and deploying new capabilities would allow emerging possibilities to be implemented rapidly.

Date workers in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province say extreme heat is making harvesting and boiling dates increasingly difficult during the season that began in July. In Khairpur district, where more than half of Pakistan’s dates are produced, workers collect fruit from trees, transport it by trolley, boil it over fires and dry it in the sun. Temperatures regularly reach 40 degrees Celsius, and were at 42 degrees when AFP spoke to worker Idris on August 14.

Workers begin before sunrise and divide their day into short shifts, but say the heat quickly overwhelms them. Some start in date orchards at about 2 a.m. to avoid the hottest part of the day, take breaks and continue until evening. Several workers told AFP they often suffer heatstroke, fainting and fever. Idris, who has harvested dates for more than a decade, said the heat has become unbearable and that workers seek medical treatment before returning to work.

Thousands of farmers and seasonal workers depend on Khairpur’s date sector. Idris said he earns about 1,200 Pakistani rupees a day. Grower Shah Nawaz Phulpoto said heavier seasonal rainfall linked to changing weather has disrupted yields and caused financial losses, while heat is the immediate main challenge.